Correcting the Past
by fanfictional
Summary: A simple attempted kidnapping case is not all that it seems to be for Ziva. What mysteries will be uncovered when the team digs deeper into a little girl's story? Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS or any of its characters. Rated T for minimal language and violence...and maybe more?
1. Chapter 1

"Gear up.", Gibbs said after receiving a phone call at his desk. He stood, and the team picked up their bags and followed him to the elevator.

They all piled in before DiNozzo asked the obvious question. "Boss, where are we going?"

Gibbs continued to stare at the metal doors. "Bethesda. Marine wife, Casey Devlin, was severely beaten two nights ago and is in a coma. The police think her daughter was the target, and Devlin got in the way. The police interrupted before he could finish the job, but he got away. The girl will be in our protective custody until we find him.", Gibbs explained quickly.

The elevators opened, and Gibbs and Ziva went to the hospital while Tony and McGee went to process the crime scene. "If Devlin is in a coma, why are we here?", Ziva asked in confusion when they arrived at their destination.

Gibbs sighed but answered. "Her daughter is here, because there is no next of kin, and she is now a protected witness in the case. She has refused to speak to anyone, but we need to find out what she knows."

"Is her husband still deployed?", Ziva asked.

"Killed in action two years ago, but you never top being a marine or marine's spouse." Gibbs said the words as if to emphasize that he was not to be contradicted, and they would be taking the case. They entered the hospital and were directed to a room with a security guard standing watch outside. "Ziva, you're going to talk to the girl, since she will probably relate better to a woman."

Ziva swallowed nervously. "You are much better with children than I. Perhaps you should talk to her.", Ziva suggested hopefully. She wasn't bad with children, but she wasn't good either. Gibbs had always done well with children who were at NCIS for various reasons. He always knew when to be gentle and fatherly or when to use tough love, but she wasn't as sure of herself in that situation.

"A man nearly killed her mom in front of her, so she will probably be more responsive to you.", he answered.

Ziva was still not convinced. "I am sure the nurses tried speaking with her. If she is in shock, I do not know how I can help anymore than trained professionals." She knew she would be going into the room anyway, so her argument was becoming less resolved and more stalling the inevitable.

"You're not interrogating her. You're making her feel comfortable, so she'll _want _to talk to us and not be afraid when we have to take her back to the navy yard with us. Now go. You can do this, and it's not an option or up for discussion." Gibbs' words were final, so Ziva gave up her fight and stepped past the security guard into the room.

Her first sights were of a bruised woman barely clinging to life in a hospital bed, and she knew this girl would be an orphan soon. The girl was sitting on a small couch across from the bed, and she looked terrified when Ziva entered the room. Ziva smiled but didn't move toward the couch."Hello, my name is Ziva. I am an NCIS agent. Do you know what that is?", she asked. She was trying to get the girl to communicate in some way. The girl nodded to say that she did know what NCIS was. "That's good.", Ziva said. "You are very pretty. I am sure you have a very pretty name. Would you tell me what it is?", she asked.

The girl watched Ziva as if assessing whether or not she could be trusted. She seemed to have made up her mind and answered. "Hadara.", she said timidly.

Ziva was suddenly struck with a realization. Hadara looked very middle eastern, but her mother was a blonde haired, blue eyed Caucasian Perhaps her father was from the middle east. "That is a pretty name. It is Hebrew for 'splendor', which is also what my name means." Ziva was trying to build a connection and trust with Hadara. "How old are you?", Ziva asked next.

Hadara had smiled when Ziva told her what her name meant and didn't wait as long before answering Ziva's second question. "Seven." Her voice was quiet and unsure when she answered the question.

Ziva couldn't resist asking the question. "Does your dad look like my color or your mom's?" She looked like her father much more than her mother, so she couldn't say whether it was suspicious if Hadara looked more like her father than mother.

Hadara's head cocked to the side in confusion and thought for a moment. "My mom." Ziva concluded that Hadara was either adopted or kidnapped shortly after birth.

She didn't voice her thoughts, because Hadara seemed unaware that she may not be biologically related to her family. "Are you hungry? I heard you have not accepted food from anyone, but I could take you to the cafeteria to get something."

Hadara watched Ziva through her chocolate brown eyes and brushed away a piece of her long, dark brown hair. Her stomach growled at the mention of food, and it seemed that she had just realized she might be hungry. She nodded and slowly stood from the couch but looked at the bed where her mom lay. Ziva saw this and said, "We can bring our food back here and eat with your mom if you would like." Hadara nodded again and took Ziva's out stretched hand.

Gibbs looked up at her when she stepped out of the room and smiled a little when he saw Hadara with her, but she could tell he had come to the same conclusion as she had about Hadara possibly being adopted. "Hadara, this is my friend Gibbs.", Ziva introduced when they reached Gibbs.

He knelt down to Hadara's level and smiled in fatherly manner to her. "Hi.", he said. Hadara hid behind Ziva's leg but peeked out at Gibbs from her hiding place. He chuckled softly and handed her a stuffed animal. "Someone told me you dropped this, and I thought you'd like it back." Hadara took the plushy bear from his hand, so that she was holding Ziva's hand with one and the bear with the other.

Ziva told Gibbs what she knew quietly and then took Hadara to the cafeteria to get food. Normally she would have gone to get the food alone, but she was worried someone would go into the room and scare Hadara back into her former shell. They got sandwiches, jello, and milk from the hospital cafeteria and then returned to Casey Devlin's room. Hadara ate silently but quickly, and Ziva merely picked at her own food. "Hadara, do you remember what happened to your mom?", Ziva asked carefully.

She watched for any signs that she had started the hard questions too early but saw none. "Yes.", Hadara answered. Hadara had still answered with no more than one word at a time, but Ziva hoped that would change.

"Did you see the man who hurt her?" Ziva was trying to be gentle. This is why she hadn't wanted the job of talking to Hadara. Ziva David could stare death in the face without flinching, but talking to a people was not her forte.

Hadara's face contorted into an expression of fear and anguish as she remembered the traumatic night that brought her to where she currently was. "Me and mommy were playing with my toys.", she began. As she spoke, she clutched the bear tighter to her chest. "Mommy had my bear and I had the lion, but someone knocked on the door, and she left."

Ziva wanted to take Hadara in her arms and hold her, but she didn't want to frighten the child recounting such a horrifying experience. "Who was at the door, Hadara?", she asked.

Hadara had long since abandoned her jello, and a tear leaked onto her bear's head. "The m-man." She was watching her bear as if waiting for the toy to save her.

"Can you tell me what he looked like? Maybe what he was wearing?"

Hadara thought back to that night. She remembered exactly what the man looked like and what he was wearing. "He had brown eyes and black hair. He was very tall, taller than daddy. He was dark like he went to the beach, and his voice was mean. He wore dark jeans and a brown shirt."

Ziva was impressed by Hadara's memory and glad they wouldn't have to worry about chasing a vague description. "What did he say?", she asked.

"He asked where I was, and mommy told him to leave, but he didn't. And he...he hu-rt her, and I c-call-ed the police like mo-mommy taught me." Hadara tried not to cry but couldn't hold back her tears as she remembered the man beating her mom to try to get to her. "She hurt him back though.", Hadara added quietly.

Ziva's ears perked at that. "Your mommy hurt the man? How?"

"Mommy always has a knife, and she hurt the man when he tried to get in. That's when...he got mad and hit her more."

Ziva was about to try to console Hadara when she received a call from Gibbs saying he was done with interviews and was ready to go. "Do you remember my friend Gibbs?" Hadara nodded. "Well both of us are helping to find the man who hurt your mommy, but we need you to come with us, so we can keep you safe."

Hadara looked at the hospital bed and held her bear tighter. "What if mommy wakes up, and I'm not here?", she asked worriedly.

Ziva felt her heart breaking at the sight of the young girl putting her mother's feelings before her own. "We will come back if she wakes up. I have more friends that you would like very much, but they are at my work. Would you like to meet them?" Hadara nodded and Ziva led her out of the room. She and Gibbs went back to the navy yard and waited for Tony and McGee to finish processing the crime scene.

_**So tell me what you think so far!**_


	2. Chapter 2

Tony and McGee stepped off the elevator on tired feet. "I'm telling you, McSqueamish, the movie is _not_ as bad as you make it sound." Tony and McGee were arguing about some movie Tony had recommended, but McGee had not enjoyed it as much.

McGee sighed agitatedly for the sixth time since the elevator ride started. "I told you it didn't scare me. I just didn't like it." McGee was trying to get out of the conversation as soon as possible, and Ziva came to his rescue as always.

"Tony, McGee, I would like you to meet Hadara.", she said when the two agents entered the bullpen. She gestured to the seven year old girl sitting at her desk with a coloring book. Hadara looked up and waved shyly to them before checking to make sure Ziva was still close by. "She is Casey Devlin's daughter."

Ziva sighed a little and looked down at Hadara. "I have to go somewhere for a little while, but you can stay here with Tony and Tim until I get back. They can introduce you to some more of my friends."

Hadara looked at the smiling Tony and McGee and then back to Ziva. Ziva smiled encouragingly at Hadara and nodded a little, so Hadara walked up to Tony and looked at him. "So, what would you like to do?", Tony asked as Ziva slipped away quickly.

Hadara looked between Tony and McGee and said but didn't speak. McGee tried next. "Do you want to meet our friend Abby?", he asked hopefully. He wasn't around children often and was looking forward to the opportunity to get help from Abby, since children didn't usually like Tony either.

Hadara looked between them again and nodded. Tony and McGee sighed in relief and Hadara followed them to Abby's lab with her bear in her hands. The elevator dinged, and Abby thought Gibbs was visiting early. "Gibbs, I'm not a miracle worker. I haven't even gotten all of the evidence yet, so-" She turned and saw Tony and McGee with a girl between them staring at the floor.

"Abby, meet Hadara. She's Casey Devlin's daughter and is in our protective custody until her mom's...the person who...that guy is caught.", McGee said.

Abby beamed a smiled at the little girl in front of her. "Do you like hippos?", she asked Hadara who looked up in confusion. She saw Burt in Abby's hands soon and smiled for the first time in days when Abby demonstrated Burt's unique abilities.

Gibbs had ordered Ziva to go to the Devlin house to get Hadara some clothes, since she wouldn't be going home anytime soon. Ziva walked through the house, careful to avoid the mess or touch anything. She went to Hadara's room, which hadn't been touched, and packed a few different varieties of clothes in an NCIS bag.

She thought while she was rummaging through the closet and drawers for clothes. She wondered what would happen to the sad little girl, since her mom would almost definitely die or have serious brain injury. Hadara's father was dead, and she had no next of kin. While waiting for Tony and McGee, Ziva had discovered the the father's brother had died seven years ago in the war (probably the reason Devlin had joined), and the mother was an only child. Both of Hadara's grand parents were dead, so she had no family to go to. Ziva sighed and finished up her packing, so she could return to NCIS.

Hadara yawned sleepily, and Tony realized it was nine in the evening, probably way past her usual bed time. Duckie and Abby had been entertaining her for some time, but they were running out of options. Ziva strode into the room, and Hadara ran to the familiar face. She latched on to Ziva's leg and hugged her tightly. "Hello, Hadara. Did you have fun with everyone?", she asked.

Hadara smiled brightly and nodded. "Abby and Duckie can do _magic_!" Hadara had spoken with an enthusiasm that only a child could pull off, and Ziva laughed at the awe in her voice.

"I am glad you enjoyed yourself. I have brought you some clothes to change into as well as your tooth brush and some pajamas.", Ziva told her. Tony and McGee went up to the bullpen with Ziva and Hadara, while Abby and Duckie went to shut down their respective labs for the night. "Gibbs, Hadara is staying with you, yes?", Ziva asked upon entering the bullpen.

Gibbs looked up, and a ghost of a mile passed over his lips. "Nope, conflict of interest for a young girl to stay with a single man. She can stay with you and DiNozzo.", he told her. Tony and Ziva had matching looks of confusion and disbelief, because there was no way there boss had just told them to spend the night together. "A man is obviously willing to go through people to get her, and I want both of you protecting her to make sure nothing happens...unless one of you thinks you can't handle it."

Tony was worried about how he would handle staying in Ziva's apartment for the entire night without Gibbs to be their rule twelve reminder. However, he wasn't about to show any of his apprehension, but he could make a joke. "She snores like a drunken sailor with chronic emphysema, and she sleeps with a gun, so I can't even tell her to shut up!", he yelled as if that explained everything.

Ziva laughed in amusement, and Hadara stood by her side smiling in confusion. "Do not worry, Tony. I will find reason to kill you before either of us goes to sleep.", she said. Tony mumbled something under his breath about being forced into code black situations (referring to the harassment seminar when Ziva asked what color murder is).

Hadara held her stuffed bear close and watched Ziva's every move, never letting her out of sight. Tony was worried about how attached Ziva had already become to Hadara, but he didn't want to voice his worries in front of everyone. Ziva walked to where Hadara was and knelt down to her level as Gibbs had done in the hospital. "Tony and I are going to take you to my home, so we can all get some sleep, okay?"

Hadara nodded and lifted her arms to be picked up when Ziva stood straight. Ziva picked Hadara up in her arms and held her close. Tony followed the two to the elevator, and they made their way to Ziva's apartment for the night.


	3. Chapter 3

Gibbs went to check on Abby, while McGee, Ziva, Tony, and Hadara left for the night. Ziva had walked to work that day, so she rode with Tony to her apartment. He had his over night bag for when they stayed at the office, so they didn't have to go to his apartment first. Ziva carried Hadara into the apartment when she realized the little girl had fallen asleep on the way home. Tony watched for anyone who might be following them before entering himself.

Ziva woke Hadara long enough for her to get into her pajamas. She laid Hadara in her bed, because she couldn't make the girl sleep on the couch. She changed into a pair of sweats and a tank top and left the room with the door cracked. Tony was looking at the couch but turned when he saw Ziva. "You may have the couch, and Hadara will sleep in my room.", she told him.

Tony had thought Ziva would take the couch if Hadara were in her room, since she had no guest room. "And where are you going to sleep?", he asked.

Ziva rolled her eyes. She didn't need Tony to pretend to be chivalrous and ask her to sleep on the couch instead. "I have slept in much more uncomfortable places than this. It is a pull over couch by the way, so you will be comfortable."

Tony was grateful that Ziva thought of him, but he had begun thinking of her before himself. "Pull out, not pull over, and we could share if it's a pull out.", he offered. They had shared a bed before, and this time they wouldn't even have to take their clothes off or be watched by two different agencies while pretending to have sex.

Ziva had no problem sharing a bed, since she had shared closer quarters with more people, but this was Tony. They had some unspoken relationship that involved longing stares and silent conversations, but she would not be the one to voice their feelings first. This was a battle of self control and who had a more stubborn will to keep their partnership and friendship stationary. "I see your point. That will work.", she answered.

Tony nodded and went to change into an old shirt but noticed he had forgotten to put shorts or sweats in his bag. He stepped back into the room in his boxers and shirt and gulped when he realized Ziva wasn't wearing a bra, and the sweat pants and tank top hugged her curves in a very enticing way. "Ready for bed?", he managed to croak out with some difficulty.

Ziva turned and noticed he had no pants on but said nothing. She was an awful liar, but she had a strong poker face. "Yes.", she said and crawled under the covers she had put on the pull out couch. Tony was mentally chanting rule twelve to himself, because thinking about head slaps and an angry Gibbs would be the only way to restrain himself.

Tony laid down on the opposite side of the couch in silence. Not long after, Ziva's snore filled the room. Tony listened for a minute and realized it wasn't nearly as bad as it had been when they were undercover. It was actually lulling him to sleep with the simple pattern. In. Out. In. Out. He let his eyes droop and absentmindedly rolled onto his side, facing Ziva, and wrapped his arm loosely around her waist. To his surprise, she snuggled back into his chest and sighed contentedly.

Ziva and Hadara were in one of the conference rooms playing with Hadara's toys while the team continued the search for her would be abductor. Tony's eyes flicked to Ziva's desk every now and then, and he had to admit he was worried about her. She was getting overly attached to a child she would have to give up sooner or later. Gibbs walked in front of his desk and stood in front of the plasma screen. "Talk to me.", he said and waited for his agents to give him some leads.

McGee began typing on his computer. "I've been going through Casey Devlin's computer history and phone records. It looks like she kept to herself. Both of her parents are deceased, and she drifted away from her friends after her husband died. She's clean, and I haven't found any suspicious activity.", he said.

Tony stood and walked over to where Gibbs was standing. "I talked to a buddy of mine at social services. He said that Hadara Devlin was adopted, but they can't tell me who her birth parents are. The records were destroyed in a fire before they could be entered into the computer. I put in a call to talk to Edna Baker who over saw Hadara's case."

Gibbs nodded. "McGee.", he commanded.

"Find out if anyone had a grudge against the Devlin family, and check for living family members.", he answered as he started his search.

"DiNozzo."

"Calling the hospital for an update on Casey Devlin's condition and making sure more security is added to her detail.", he said as he ran to his desk.

Gibbs nodded and walked out of the squad room toward Abby's lab. "Got anything, Abs?", he asked upon entering the room. He handed Abby her caf-pow, which she accepted gratefully.

"You know you wouldn't be here if I didn't have something, oh fearless leader! So, when our bad guy tried to get into the house Casey Devlin tried to close the door in his face. He pressed his palm against the door to hold it open, like this." She demonstrated how the intruder would have splayed his hand on the door. "This gave me some perfect finger prints from his right hand, and I got a match. Aamir Zahavi. He worked as a doctor in the Gaza Strip when he was just out of medical school, but he left shortly before a retaliatory attack from Israel."

Gibbs had started walking away before Abby was done talking, and he rushed back up to the bullpen. Tony started talking as soon as he entered."Something wrong boss? Abby just sent us what she found, but she said you seemed upset when you left." McGee and Tony exchanged worried glances when Gibbs only stared at the picture of Aamir Zahavi.

"Get Ziva down her, now. Tell her to leave Hadara with another agent." Tony whipped out his phone and called Ziva to relay Gibbs' message. She had protested at first, saying she didn't want to leave Hadara with a stranger, but Tony convinced her (mostly with the rush to his voice and concern over Gibbs).

Ziva walked into the bullpen and saw Gibbs staring at the picture. "Is he the man who tried to abduct Hadara?", she asked curiously.

Gibbs turned to her suddenly. "Do you have contacts in the Gaza Strip?", he asked. Ziva was confused but nodded that she did. "Good. Call them and ask if there was any connection between Aamir Zahavi and Ari Haswari.", he ordered.

Everyone stared at him in shocked silence. Hearing Ari's name hit Ziva hard, because memories of Gibbs' past accusations filled her mind. "Why would Ari know this man?", she asked slowly. She looked at the picture again but was sure she had never seen him before, so he wasn't mossad. Did that make him a Hamas terrorist?

They all looked to Gibbs for an answer. "Abby said he worked in the Gaza Strip just before Israel sent the missiles as a retaliation strike, and that's when Ari left. They worked in the same camp together."

Ziva composed herself and schooled her face into a blank mask. "I will speak with my contacts.", she said and walked to her desk. She dialed the first number and a man answered on the first ring. "Shalom.", she said and started the process of calling in her favors.

"Uh, boss, the Devlin family had no threats or enemies that I could see. There are also no other family members. Casey Devlin is Hadara's only living relative.", McGee said when the shaky silence in the room became too much. He wasn't sure how his words were supposed to help in the tense situation, but now Gibbs wouldn't be mad at him for moving to slowly.

Tony picked up on McGee attempts to break the tension, but his news would be just as unhelpful. "I talked to Devlin's doctor, and it's not good, boss. He said that she has minimal brain activity, and she'll be lucky if she lives through the night. Ziva might want to take Hadara to the hospital to see her."

He looked to Ziva and could tell she had heard everything despite the fact that she was talking in another language to someone in another country. Everyone was having flash backs from years earlier to when Kate died and when Ziva killed Ari while Gibbs stared down Zahavi's picture. Ziva ended the call and all eyes turned to her. "My contact tells me that Aamir and Ari were closer than brothers, and Aamir left without reason after receiving a call from Ari. He believes Ari learned of the attack and was trying to get Aamir and his mother out but was only partially successful."

"Do you think this guy's trying to finish what Ari started?", McGee asked.

Tony was watching Ziva to see if she was as okay as she tried to seem but heard what McGee had asked. "Why would someone plotting a terrorist attack on Mossad be trying to kidnap a little girl who was raised in America since birth?"

They were all wondering the same thing when a woman entered the bullpen, escorted by an agent. "I'm looking for Agent DiNozzo. He called about an adoption I set up from seven years ago?", she asked.

Tony stood and held his hand out for her to shake. She was an attractive woman, but he didn't notice in light of the situation connecting to Ziva's family and past. "Yes. Mrs. Baker, this agent will take you to a conference room." He nodded to the agent who had escorted Mrs. Baker and turned to Gibbs to await his orders.

"Tony, you and Ziva interview Mrs. Baker and ask about anything suspicious with the adoption after you talk to her about Hadara's birth parents. McGee, help Abby find Aamir Zahavi and look into any communications he had with Ari or known terrorists after leaving the Gaza Strip." Everyone began moving to do what they were told, and Gibbs went for coffee.

Tony and Ziva entered the conference room and sat at the table across from Mrs. Baker. "Mrs. Baker, do you remember the case of Hadara Devlin?", Tony started and laid the pictures of Mr. and Mrs. Devlin on the table.

Mrs. Baker looked at each picture carefully and recognized Casey. "Please call me Edna, and I remember Mrs. Devlin. They had been trying to have a child for so long and had tried adoption two times before, but it never went through. It's hard to adopt when you're constantly moving and one of the spouses is in a high risk occupation, but I fought for them. This girl seemed perfect for them, because no one could take her away."

Ziva and Tony didn't understand what Edna was talking about. "I do not follow. Are children often taken from their adoptive families?", Ziva asked. Tony had been wondering the same thing, because it seemed odd to place a child with a family just to take them away.

Edna sighed sadly and nodded. "The courts side with biological parents as often as possible, because in theory it's better for a child to be with the mom who gave birth to them. Hadara's mom died during child birth, and no father ever stepped forward, so it seemed like the perfect place for her to go was with the Devlin's."

"Do you remember anything odd about or suspicious about her case? Was anyone trying to take Hadara or asking about her?", Ziva questioned.

"I can't think of anything, The Devlin's lived in what some would call the Boondocks. That's also where Hadara's birth mom lived, but the Devlin's moved almost right after the adoption. A man did come to me almost two months after the adoption and asked about a baby whose mom had died during birth, but it was a closed adoption, so I told him I couldn't give him any information."

She looked through all of the pictures on the table and picked Aamir's up off the table."This is the man. I remember, because I was looking over my shoulder for weeks after talking to him." She stared at the picture and shuddered at the memory of him staring her down with a threatening spark in his eyes.

"Did he threaten you?", Tony asked.

"No...just the way he looked at me was terrifying when I said I wasn't allowed to give him any information.", she said while still staring at the picture.

Ziva decided to change the topic, since Edna was becoming less detailed with each question. "Tell us about the fire that destroyed the adoption records.", she said.

Edna calmed down some as she remembered those events. "The fire was a stupid mistake. Tim Janson was supposed to be putting the records into the computer, but he fell asleep at his desk while smoking a cigarette." She sounded angry at the man's ignorance, but her voice saddened toward the end. "He was killed in the fire."

"If he was killed in the fire, how do you know that is how the fire was started?", Ziva asked suspiciously. Years of Mossad training and missions had made her paranoid about "accidental" deaths without witnesses.

"There was a security camera that recorded everything that happened. The fire wasn't able to reach the security room, so the tapes were unharmed. We watched it and saw him fall asleep, and the cigarette fell into the trash bin by the desk." She suppressed another shudder at the memories of Tim waking up and not being able to escape the room.

Ziva nodded in understanding and accepted the answer. "Did the man who came to you say why he was looking for Hadara?", Tony asked. He was trying to get back to the original topic, since Edna had calmed down.

"He said that her father had asked him to get her, but he refused to tell me her father's name or bring him in. He said that her father was dead, and his dying wish was for her to stay with this man, but without legal documents or a name..." She trailed off quietly.

Tony and Ziva assumed Aamir had been lying, because there was no way he could know who Hadara's father was when he had never come into contact with either of her families. "Thank you for your time. You can call us if you think of anything else.", Tony said and handed Edna his card.

They walked back into the bullpen after interviewing Edna and saw McGee walking in at the same time as them. "Boss, all records show that Ari and Aamir had no contact after their time together at the Gaza Strip, but Abby's trying to track his phone now. Since we have his name we thought we could just look his phone up, but he has so many and a few are burn phones.", McGee said in a rush.

Gibbs was relieved to hear that Ari wasn't haunting them from the grave and turned to Tony and Ziva for their update. "Edna said the adoption went smoothly. Hadara's biological mother died during child birth, and she had no father. Aamir started asking about her, claiming he knew the father, but refused to give anymore information.", Ziva said

Tony picked up where she left off quickly "The fire that destroyed the adoption records was an accident, and there's a tape to prove it. Maybe Aamir is Hadara's father and wanted to get her back.", he suggested.

It made sense, and Gibbs nodded. Abby ran into the room and went to Gibbs. "Boss man, I have the answers!"


	4. Chapter 4

"You found out why Aamir was trying to kidnap Hadara?", Tony asked.

"You know who Hadara's father is?", Ziva asked.

Abby huffed in aggravation. "I didn't say I have _all _of the answers, but I know where Aamir is. I was tracing his phones, but I had to do each one individually and then eliminate certain ones based on cross referencing th-"

"Abby.", Gibbs said to focus her on the point and fast forward the story to the end.

"Right. The point is I know where he is!", she said gleefully. Everyone ran to their desks to gear up while Abby gave Gibbs the information she had found.

They drove to the small house in Anacostia and exited the vehicle. "Ziva, Tony, take the back. McGee, with me.", Gibbs ordered as he ran to the front door. Tony and Ziva followed orders and went to the back door. They waited for the signal, and Tony kicked the door in at the same time Gibbs gave the front door the same treatment. "Federal Agents!", Gibbs yelled into the house.

Aamir had been going over some new plans to get the girl when his house was invaded by cops from both exits. He stood and pointed his gun at Gibbs, then McGee, then Ziva, then Tony, but he wasn't sure where to train the weapon. "That's a bad idea, Aamir.", Gibbs yelled to the man aiming a gun at him.

"I will shoot you.", he yelled back in a thickly accented voice. He looked between the four agents, but his gun hand held steady. His gaze lingered on Ziva for only a half second longer than everyone else, but they all noticed.

"There are four of us and one of you. You might be able to get off one shot before you have twenty bullets in you. Do you like those odds?", Gibbs reasoned. Aamir was blatantly staring at Ziva at that point, and she had the feeling that he wanted to tell her something. Aamir sighed and lowered his weapon. Gibbs cuffed Aamir and led him back to the car.

When they arrived back at the navy yard, Aamir was immediately taken to an interrogation room. Gibbs made him wait for nearly an hour before entering the room and sitting across from Aamir. He laid a file on the table in front of him and watched Aamir closely for signs of agitation or nervousness. "Why did you try to take the girl?", he asked calmly.

Aamir looked up at him quickly, because he was worried about how much the agent before him knew. "I have nothing to say to you.", he answered. He had wanted to abandon the mission, but he had to keep his promise from so many years ago.

"You beat this woman into a coma, so you could take her daughter from her! Do you like little girls? Is that why you tried to take her?" Gibbs was towering over Aamir, and his voice had risen to an angry growl.

"That is sick! I can not believe you would say that of me!" Aamir had also stood, but Gibbs' mere presence made Aamir seem like he was standing next to a twenty foot tall tree.

"Then why?!", Gibbs demanded. He banged his hand on the table to emphasize his question, but Aamir only stared at him.

Aamir took a deep breath and sat down slowly. He closed his eyes and focused on not saying too much in the heat of his anger. "Agent Gibbs, I have a mission, and you will not goad me into divulging any pertinent information." Aamir and Gibbs stared each other down, neither refusing to be the first to break eye contact.

"By mission, you mean as a terrorist? You want to use her in some attack, because she's young and won't be suspected?"

Tony and McGee watched from the observation side of the glass and waited for Aamir to break or give away more than he intended. "This guy doesn't seem like a terrorist. There were no explosives or plans in his house, and he's not acting like the terrorists we've seen."

"True, he's not being arrogant or talking incessantly about religion or killing Americans.", McGee observed in agreement. They watched as Aamir and Gibbs stared each other down in silence. Aamir was more guarded and thought about what he would say before speaking it. He wasn't ranting or yelling at them about their stupidity.

"I wish to speak with Ziva David. She is an agent here, yes?", Aamir said finally. He knew that he would fail his mission now. Whether he spoke on the subject or not, he would still go to prison for at least attempted murder, breaking and entering, and who knows what else for pulling his gun on federal agents and running. He had to tell her though, because she was the only person he could trust with his information.

"You don't need to talk to her. You'll be on the next plane to Gitmo unless you can tell me something to prove that you're not a terrorist.", Gibbs answered coolly. He was not one to give into a criminal's demands or provide favors to terrorists. When Aamir didn't say anything, Gibbs rose from his seat and walked to the door. "Enjoy the guards at Gitmo. I've heard great things."

"Wait!", Aamir yelled just as the door was nearly closed. Gibbs smiled to himself before turning back into the room. They always fell for that trick, and he would never understand why criminals were so scared to call his bluff, but he liked it that way. "I must speak with Ziva. It is about a family matter that she will want to know of.", he said.

Gibbs didn't like the vague answers and demands to see Ziva after watching Aamir stare her down when they were bringing him in. "I'll get the information to her.", he told Aamir from the door way. The last thing he needed was to put Ziva into some dangerous situation or in the presence of a possible stalker.

Aamir shook his head and laughed humorlessly. "You are not understanding. She will not want to hear this from anyone else. My guess is she will not wish to hear it at all, but she needs to, because it concerns family." Gibbs considered his options, and Tony and McGee were shocked when he agreed to allow Ziva to talk to Aamir.

They followed Gibbs to the squad room, voicing their objections and worries the entire entire way. They told him that it was a bad idea to send her in there with Aamir and that they would go instead. Tony and McGee knew very well that Ziva could protect herself, but that didn't stop them from wanting to keep her from being hurt. Gibbs turned on them suddenly, and the agents nearly walked into their boss. "He could have an accomplice somewhere, and we need Ziva to get information out of him."

"Ziva.", Gibbs said as he walked into the bullpen area and saw that she was playing with Hadara. She and Hadara looked up at him curiously with the exact same expression on their faces. "Aamir says he will only talk to you."

She nodded and took Hadara off her lap. "I have to go talk to someone, but you can stay here with Tony and Tim, okay?", she said to Hadara carefully.

The girl had become well acquainted with all the members on Team Gibbs, so she had no problem when she was sent to visit Ducky or Abby. She nodded and walked to where Tony and McGee were standing. "Look what I drew.", she said to them. Neither man could remain impassive at the sweet voice of the little girl before them.

Ziva went back towards the interrogation rooms. She went into the room with Aamir, and Gibbs stayed back in the squad room to give her privacy. He hated not knowing what was happening with one of his agents, but this wasn't his information to get. "Ziva, it is good to finally meet you.", Aamir said kindly when Ziva entered the room.

"I can not say the same of you.", she responded in a cold, even voice.

Aamir watched her lean against the wall and was sure this was the woman who had been mentioned to him. "I have information for you that you will be needing to know. It is about Hadara.", he told her.

Ziva was confused as to why this man was being so open with her when his answers to Gibbs had been vague wisps of a possible answer. "Start at the beginning, the night you tried to take Hadara from her home.", she told him.

Aamir took in a breath and prepared to tell his story. "The beginning is much further back than that night. Your brother Ari called me seven years ago and said that he had to speak with me. He told me about his betrayal and Agent Gibbs. He said that I must leave my place in hiding and come to America to help him."

"Help him kill Agent Gibbs? That is what he was trying to do seven years ago." Ziva wanted to keep him talking, because he had begun to look unsure of himself once he had started.

"He told me of his vendetta and said that either he or Agent Gibbs would die. He was sure he would live but wanted me there in case he did not. He told me of a woman who was to have a baby. Her husband had been a friend of Ari's who was helping him in the states, but the friend had been killed. He wanted me to take the girl if he were to die as well and hide her from Mossad. He was sure that his father would have the girl killed like his mother was, so I agreed to protect the girl."

Ziva couldn't believe Ari had asked for protection for Hadara, and he had said nothing to her about a baby. "Why did you not get her? She was taken by another family."

"She was born two months before Ari's death and had already been adopted by the time I was able to discover her mother's location. After discovering that the records had been destroyed, I had to track her down using other methods. It took all these years to find her, and I was so close. I was unable to keep my promise.", he said sadly.

"What were you to do with her then, if you were not to make her a martyr or mule?", Ziva questioned again.

"My orders were to keep her away from Israel and Eli David. Ari told me that if I failed, I was to tell you of Hadara. Only if you were no longer a Mossad officer, and you are not."

Ziva was silent for a moment. Nothing added up in her mind. Ari had asked his friend to protect Hadara, but that made no sense. "I do not understand. Why would Ari order you to protect another man's child?", she asked more to herself.

"I know the reason! I have discovered the lies Ari told me. When I saw you today, everything came together, because you look alike, you and Ari. Hadara is his child, your niece! But there is more to it than that."


	5. Chapter 5

Ziva watched from just outside the bullpen as Hadara and Tony crawled around on his hands and knees with Hadara sitting on his back like she was riding a horse. Ziva had bonded with the little girl and come to be more attached than she should have been, but now Hadara was her flesh and blood. Hadara turned and saw Ziva watching them. "Ziva, look! I'm riding a horsey!" Ziva laughed at the look on Hadara and Tony's faces, and she couldn't help but walk over and laugh with them.

Gibbs watched them from his desk and wondered silently how Ziva would handle the situation she had been put into. Ari was her brother, but he had also been a murderous monster who had tried to kill half of Gibbs' team and succeeded once. He smiled at the sight of his senior field agent rolling on the ground while Hadara "tickled" him and Ziva helping her catch her next pony, Tim.

Ziva felt the gaze on her and knew she needed to tell the team what they had found out. All Tony and McGee knew was that Aamir had confessed to all the charges and had been taken to booking, but they didn't know how drastically Ziva's life had changed. "Hadara, I need to speak with Tony and Tim for a minute. We will be back shortly.", Ziva said. Hadara nodded and went to play with Gibbs, because she had stolen everyone's heart.

Ziva led Tony and McGee to a place beside the stairs where they had the most privacy and looked back and forth at their confused faces. "Aamir did not only confess to his crimes. He told me something that has shocked me, and I am not sure if I believe it." Tony and McGee gave her worried expressions after her introduction, and she was having trouble forcing her words into sentences. "She is- He told me- Hadara is my niece. She is Ari's daughter."

Tony and McGee shared shocked expressions of disbelief. Ziva explained everything that had happened in the interrogation room and waited for them to say something, anything. "This is kind of good news.", McGee said optimistically.

Tony realized what he meant, because there was some information Ziva had not yet been privy to. "Casey Devlin died this morning. They weren't able to resuscitate, so Hadara doesn't- didn't have anyone." Ziva was scared then. She was Hadara's only living relative, and she had decisions to make. "You don't have to tell anyone. No one would blame you for not wanting to raise a child you only met a few days ago.", Tony assured her.

He knew how attached Ziva had become to Hadara. The night they shared in her apartment had been an obvious indicator. He recalled hearing Hadara crying from a nightmare about her mom's attack. Ziva had not hesitated to take the girl in her arms and sing her to sleep. After Hadara had fallen asleep, Ziva had lain down with her on the pull out couch, and Hadara had spent the rest of the night snuggled between Ziva and Tony. He hadn't said anything, but he had been worried that Ziva wouldn't be able to give Hadara up when the case was over. Now she might not have to.

Ziva considered his words. She wanted children, but she had wanted them with a husband. Her job was dangerous and came with unpredictable hours. She wasn't sure she would be allowed to keep Hadara in such an unstable living situation, but she wanted to try. "I do not know if I would be allowed to keep her with the way our job is, but I love her so much already.", she admitted to them.

"What about that neighbor you have with the insomnia? You said she's always up at crazy hours of the night anyway, and she has a five year old, so you know she's experienced with kids.", Tony offered.

They didn't speak for long on the subject, but Ziva was seriously considering Tony's idea. The woman who lived just down the hall from her was always moving around in the late hours of the night, and her daughter was very well behaved. She seemed like an adequate mother, so Ziva could ask her about baby sitting when work called.

She had called Edna Baker to talk about the possibility of adopting Hadara, but Edna had said she would need to talk face to face about the arrangements and options. Ziva watched McGee teach Hadara about something on the computer and laughed when Abby walked in briskly. "Tim, it is my turn with Hadara! Why do you always have to take her?"

"Tony's the one who wouldn't let me play with her, because he was too busy teaching her about movies that no one cares about.", McGee defended quickly.

Tony looked up at him and rolled his eyes. He had been teaching Hadara about the best films and telling her which to avoid. "It was an important life lesson that needed to be taught before her mind could be tainted by McTechSupport." Hadara laughed at the familial banter and walked over to head slap Tony. "Who let Gibbs have her?", Tony asked incredulously.

They were all laughing when Edna walked towards the group. Ziva sobered from her happy mood quickly and replaced it with anxiety. "Hello, Edna. Thank you for seeing me.", Ziva said to the woman and held her hand out.

Edna greeted her and shook her hand before getting to the business at hand. "Agent David, I will need to speak with both you and Hadara about this, and you will have to go through a probationary stage before we can look at adoption. It's to make sure that there are no regrets half way through the process."

Ziva nodded, and she showed Edna to the conference room so they could talk. They stepped into the room and each sat on one side of the table in the center of the room. "Agent David, I'm just going to ask you a few routine questions to make sure you understand what you're getting into with this. Are you in a place financially where you could support yourself and Hadara?" Ziva nodded, and Edna wrote down her answer. "Your work hours are fairly sporadic. Do you have someone who could watch Hadara if you were called in at a late hour?"

"My neighbor agreed to watch Hadara when I'm away at work, since she's a stay at home mom.", Ziva answered. The questions continued until Edna said that she had enough from Ziva and would like to speak with Hadara.

Hadara was escorted into the room and sat in the recently vacated seat across from Edna. "Hello, Hadara. My name is Edna, and I'm going to ask you some questions." Hadara nodded, and Edna saw the same characteristics she had seen in Ziva. "Do you like Agent David?", Edna asked.

"Ziva's really nice, and she makes really yummy food.", Hadara said brightly.

Edna nodded and wrote down in her note pad before continuing. "I see you stayed with her for a couple of nights. How was that?", Edna asked.

"I had a nightmare the first night, but Ziva made it all better. We watched movies last night, and Tony ordered pizza for us. It was so fun!"

Edna nodded again. "So Agent DiNozzo and David are in a relationship, like a mommy and daddy?", she asked. She wanted to be sure to question anyone who would have a hand in raising Hadara, so it seemed necessary to follow that line of questioning.

"No, they act like mommy and daddy, but they don't kiss and stuff.", she said. Hadara was becoming bored quickly, and she was ready to go play. "Can I go play with Duckie now?", she asked.

Edna asked the rest of her questions and allowed Hadara to leave. She interviewed Tony, McGee, Gibbs, Abby, and Duckie throughout the remainder of the day and was met with only positive answers about Ziva's capabilities in raising Hadara. She walked into the bullpen and saw Hadara explaining a picture of her and Ziva playing. "Agent David, everything looks good from what I've observed today. I'm going to allow Hadara to stay with you, and someone will be sent to make sure everything's going well in a month or so. Good luck.", Edna said before leaving.

Hadara looked around when she realized everyone had gone silent. "Am I staying with you, Ziva?", Hadara asked quietly. She had asked before, and Ziva hadn't known how to answer. Before she had wondered the same thing, but now she had an answer.

"Yes.", she told Hadara with a smile on her face. They had the next day off, because of the hours they had put into the case. Tony, McGee, Palmer, Abby, Duckie, and even Gibbs spent their day off at Ziva's apartment to spoil Hadara with toys and books. It was like a welcome home party for the little girl who had been through so much.

Ziva had been trying to think of a way to tell the team about what she had been told. They knew Hadara was her niece, but there was so much more to it, and she wasn't sure how to handle it or if she should keep Hadara. Gibbs had noticed Ziva's distant behavior and could tell she wanted someone to know. He walked to where she was and and rested his back against the wall, mirroring her.

"Aamir told me more than what I shared with you all.", she said after minutes of silence. She was watching Hadara play with Abby, because Abby insisted her job for the day was entertainment. They were playing with the new toys Hadara had gotten. Ziva smiled as she remembered Abby saying that Hadara was going to have more toys than any other kid when the team was done shopping for her.

Gibbs followed Ziva's line of vision. He had known that she was holding back when she had told them about Hadara being Ari's child, but he knew she would talk when she was ready. "She's a great kid. Nothing like her father except her looks.", he observed when Ziva said didn't elaborate on her statement.

This seemed to pull her from her inner thoughts and battles. Ziva was trying to think of a way to ask her question, because Gibbs was the best candidate. He was like a father to her, and she trusted him whole heartedly, but that didn't make what she had to say in easier. "Could you take Hadara if I have to leave for a while?", she asked quietly.

She turned her head to look at Gibbs and saw that he was still watching the scene before them. "Where would you be going, Ziva?" That's when he turned to meet her eyes, and she knew that if something happened he would take Hadara.

Soon she would have to tell everyone, so she could start now or tell everyone at once. "I have some things to take care of, and I may need to take some time off from work to do it."

Gibbs was giving her the stare that made her feel like he was reading her soul off a piece of paper. It was the one that could make witnesses stop holding back information and could make criminals confess crimes that had happened before they were born. "What's going on?"

Ziva wanted to look away from the piercing stare, she really did, but there was no way to save yourself once Leroy Jethro Gibbs decided you needed to do something. "I would rather tell you all at the same time. Without Hadara.", she added. Gibbs stared into her for a few minutes longer before accepting her answer and nodding. As quickly as he had come, he was gone again. Gibbs was quickly on the other side of the room with Duckie, and Ziva was left to her thoughts. She would have to tell them all what she had been told, and it was not going to be easy.


	6. Chapter 6

Ziva looked around the bull pen from her desk the next day. Gibbs was typing at his computer, McGee was working on some ideas for his next book, and Tony was pretending to do work while actually watching a film on his computer. It was now or never. She stood from her seat and spoke. "Gibbs, since we are not on a case, may I borrow everyone for a few minutes?", she asked.

Gibbs looked at her and knew what her meeting concerned. He nodded and stood. Tony and McGee did the same but with confused expressions. Ziva motioned for them to follow her and lead them to Abby's lab. She instructed Tony to call Duckie and Palmer to meet them.

They walked into the lab and saw Abby waiting with a concerned look on her face. Ziva had forewarned her of their visit, and Abby had already gotten Burt in case it was bad news. Duckie and Palmer joined the group soon after, and they all looked to Ziva for answers to the many questions flowing through their minds. "I wanted to tell you all this in person, so you would not be confused. I am leaving for an unknown amount of time, and my request for time off has already been approved."

"You're not going back to mossad, are you?" Abby's scared, high pitched voice almost broke Ziva's heart, and it continued. "We love you so much, and I don't what I would do if you left again for months without any contact! And what if you get captured again, and-"

In an uncharacteristic move, Ziva initiated a hug with Abby. Abby was shocked at first but quickly returned the embrace. Ziva stepped back and continued. "This mission will be all my own. Ari has another child, a boy. He's ten years old, and Ari hid him from everyone for years. Aamir gave me a name, and I talked to some old friends who told me where he was last seen. I have to find him."

The faces around her were varieties of acceptance and pride (Gibbs and Duckie), fear and anxiety (Abby and McGee), worry (Palmer), and determination? (Tony) "I'm going with you.", he said without any doubt in has voice.

"Tony, this is not your fight. I can not ask you to risk your life to help someone you do not know or have any relation to.", Ziva said. She appreciated the worry for her safety, but she could already see Abby and McGee making the decision to join her as well.

"How is this life threatening? And as long as you're involved, this is our fight, all of us.." He was standing right in front of her, staring into her eyes with the most genuine look she had ever seen.

"We can help you.", Abby said. Ziva was about to protest but couldn't bear to put the kicked puppy look back on Abby's already sad face.

She looked at each person and stopped on Gibbs. She saw the message in his eyes and remembered how much better her life was when she let her team help her. She nodded a little but had to stop the celebration Abby was about to start. "But I go alone! Chaviv Gautier was living with his three siblings and single mother in Paris. Ari never spoke to Aimee, Chaviv's mother, again. I am going to Paris to see if she is still there, because Chaviv went missing six months ago. Aamir said that his job was to get Hadara, and Ari promised a terrorist that he could have Chaviv if he found him. I think he found him."

Abby had already started checking out the names Ziva had listed with McGee's help. Duckie and Palmer didn't have much to do, but they were there as moral support. "I still have some old contacts in Paris who might be higher up than yours. I'll put in some calls.", Gibbs said and left the room.

Tony had heard everything Ziva said. He noted her reasons for wanting to keep them away from the danger she was running into head first, but he couldn't see why she wanted to go without back up. "I know I can't fight my way through a hundred armed assassins with my bare hands like you can, but I'm not completely helpless. I'm also not asking for you to let me come. I'm telling you that I will follow you to Paris and help you whether you want me to or not. It'll be a lot easier for all of us if you just accept my help."

Abby had of course "aw"ed at the appropriate times, and McGee was smiling like he was watching a romantic comedy. Ziva knew Tony was being completely honest. He would follow her to Paris , and it wouldn't be hard with Abby on his side. "We would be chasing a terrorist, and I am not sure how many people he will have working for him or if Chaviv is still alive. We will be going in blind. It will be as dangerous as my mission to to kill Saleem, and you remember how that turned out."

Tony smiled, because he heard her words and translated them into his own. "I believe you just said we _will_ be going in blind, and I remember coming home from Somalia. I'm going; just tell me when we leave.", he said.

Abby couldn't help but think of what could happen with Ziva and Tony being alone in Paris. "Aimee Gautier still lives in Paris with her two other sons and daughter, and I have her address. Should I book a flight for you?", Abby asked.

"Actually, Abby, I have an old acquaintance who owes me a favor and happens to own a small plane. Ari told Aamir about me, and I would not want to alert anyone to our presence if he did the same with this man." Tony was nodding in agreement, but he wondered again how Ziva managed to procure so many people into her debt. She always seemed to have someone who owed her a favor. Abby was about to answer when Ziva's phone rang. "Shalom, Russell.", she said kindly. "Ah, so you know who it is then? Is he still in Paris? Right, thank you." Ziva wrote down the information she had received and rejoined the group.

"Who's Russell?", Tony asked as soon as Ziva was beside him. He had been listening to her conversation and didn't like how close she sounded with this Russell. He also wasn't happy that it sounded like they would be seeing more of her friend.

Ziva laughed at his obvious jealousy. "He is...a friend in Paris. He said that he heard some rumors going around that a man named Evron Agassi has been recruiting in different parts of Europe for some time. One of the men he tried to recruit said that he had a boy with him at all times."

Did the guy say anything else?", Tony asked hopefully

"He was shot in his home the same day.", she answered bluntly. "Russell is flying back today and will allow us free passage tomorrow afternoon.", she added as an after thought.

Abby pulled them both into a hug. "You have to be careful and call me everyday. I know we'll talk when I find something, but I want updates and proof of life. Not that I think you're going to get hurt, because you're not. You're not allowed to get hurt, but I want you back as soon as possible. I love you guys!"

Tony and Ziva returned the hug, and everything became a little more real. Soon after, they left the lab and went to their respective apartments to pack for the long trip to come. Gibbs had called and told them to go into work the next day as if everything was normal, so they did. Before they left work that evening, Abby gave them hugs that could rival a boa constrictor. Good byes and well wishes were sent. Tony and Ziva were ordered to check in upon arrival and lay low until more information was sent to them. Although they would see everyone the next day, it felt like they were leaving that night, because no one was allowed to mention the mission again in the building.

_**I know this chapter was a little short, but I've already started on the next one and they're going to get longer...tell me what you think!**_


	7. Chapter 7

"Hey, Ziva. Ready to go?", Tony asked after signing his last report of the day.

Ziva had been staring out the window for nearly an hour, but Tony had been able to guess at what thoughts had infiltrated her mind. She looked up when he spoke to her and nodded. "Yes, it is time we begin are trip."

Both agents stepped onto the elevator in silence. No one looked at them differently or wondered whether or not they would return to work the next day, because only a short list of people knew where they would be and what they would be doing. The director was not on that list of people and would probably not be happy when he finally realized what had happened right under his nose.

Abby had removed the GPS and tracker from one of the cars, so Tony and Ziva couldn't be followed if someone was suspicious. Ziva drove, because she claimed she could lose anyone who might be following them. It took them twenty minutes to arrive at a small air field that should have been almost an hour away, and a man walked out from, beneath the hangar to meet them. "Ziva, it is so good to see you again.", Russell said and pulled Ziva into a hug, which she didn't resist.

"It has been far too long, Russell. How have you been?", she replied cordially.

"I have been well. I must admit, I was surprised when you called. Should I be worried about the FBI knocking down my door again?", he asked jokingly.

Ziva sent him a coy smile and vaguely replied, "Not the FBI. When will we be able to take off?" She looked at the small air craft and recalled the last time she had been inside of it. She smiled a little remembering how reckless she had been in the past. "Do you remember the last time I borrowed a flight from you?", she asked him.

Russell chuckled a bit before responding. "As I recall you pushed a man from my plane and claimed he tripped after opening the door to do some sight seeing. I also recall he was trying to kill me, which put me in your debt, not that I mind of course."

Tony didn't miss the way Russell had looked Ziva up and down in appreciation, and now he knew they had more than just one chance meeting. "So, when can we get this show on the road?", Tony broke in loudly. He moved to stand behind Ziva and to the right as he usually did. After everything that had happened in Somalia, Tony found himself feeling like he should be near her more often- to make sure she was safe, of course.

Russell and Ziva shared one more look before he turned his attention to Tony. "We will leave as soon as your bags are loaded.", he said. "I assume you still travel light.", he directed to Ziva.

She smiled at another memory that she opted not to enlighten Tony on. "I do.", she confirmed and proceeded to pull her single bag from the back seat of the car. "After this favor, you may want to avoid the states for a short while.", she told him. Russell only laughed and led them to the plane after Tony had gotten his own bag.

The plane was small, and Tony could have easily walked from one end to the other in a few strides, but he wasn't about to complain to someone who had pushed a person out of the same plane. Russell's voice came over an intercom shortly after, and Ziva and Tony prepared themselves for a long, bumpy flight. "Buckle up, and enjoy the ride. We will be arriving in Paris in about eight hours.", Russell announced from the cockpit.

"What's our plan?", Tony asked after a whole ten minutes of silence. He had been watching Ziva and wanted to replace the haunted look in her eyes with contentment, happiness, or anything other than what he saw then.

Ziva had been remembering Ari. He had never given even the smallest hint that had a child, let alone two children. He had lied to her about shooting Kate, about being a terrorist, about betraying his country, so she shouldn't have been surprised to find that he had lied to her one more time. "We find somewhere to stay and interview Aimee Gautier. Depending on the information, we either follow a lead or find out if anyone has uncovered new information.", she answered.

Tony was surprised that she could be so level headed when her nephew was in possible danger. Then again that was Ziva. She forced herself to focus on what she could do and forget the things that were out of her control. "Sounds like a good plan. Out of curiosity, how many weapons are you hiding on your person?", Tony asked and looked her up and down.

Ziva laughed and was thankful that their flirtatious banter was securely in place. "You will only find out if you search me. Thoroughly.", she replied seductively. She watched his eyes dilate, as they always did when she flirted more aggressively. Their flirtatious conversation continued in a silent stare down until Tony finally looked away.

Soon Ziva was sleeping, and Tony wondered how she and Gibbs could sleep on the horrible cargo planes. He watched her sleeping but knew it was the light sleep that she would wake up from at the slightest human movement. He could tell when she was really sleeping, because her face was always more peaceful. It was like the pain and betrayals from her past melted away when her subconscious took over. Currently, she looked as stressed as always, so it was obvious.

Eight hours later Ziva was awake, and the plane was making its descent. The plane touched down, and they were in Paris, ready to start walking down a winding, blank path. They picked up their bags and stepped off the plane into the morning sun. In Paris it was nine in the morning, so the day had just begun. "Thank you, Russell. I believe our debt is settled now.", Ziva said to their pilot.

Russell laughed jovially and pulled her into a hug, which Tony was quickly tiring of. "You call me whenever you need a ride. You know that.", he told her. She returned the hug less awkwardly than most, and they broke apart more slowly than was necessary. Ziva kissed Russell on the cheek, and they said their good byes.

Tony and Ziva began walking from the small airport they had landed in, and Tony realized that they had exactly one lead. If nothing came of it, they could be waiting for months before something new came up. He would be in Paris, the most romantic city, with Ziva for at least a week minimum. He smiled to himself and watched her walking ahead of him. Of course he couldn't help but let his eyes wander and follow the swing of her hips. "If you do not stop staring at my ass, you will be one appendage short when we arrive at our hotel.", she warned him without turning.

He smirked when he noticed that her hips were still swaying provocatively, if not more so than before. He ran after her, and they began towards their hotel. "Since the bill doesn't go to NCIS on this one, how are we going to afford to live in a hotel for possibly a _month_?", he asked when he caught up to Ziva.

"We are not staying in a hotel. I have a friend who left me a home after she died. No one has lived in it for many years, but it has been well taken care of.", Ziva told him. He stopped short, and Ziva stopped a few feet away when she realized he wasn't following. "What?"

"You have a lot of friends who like to do favors for you. Makes me wonder how you keep people in you debt for so long is all.", he observed and began walking again.

She laughed and continued walking as well. "Some people enjoy doing favors for me. Does it bother you that they are mostly men?", she inquired with another smirk.

"No. I just wonder how professional killer makes so many friends."

"I have more enemies than friends, Tony, and most are in both categories." Her answer was in an objective tone, and she seemed to not care that she couldn't trust the majority of her friends. Tony decided not to comment on this but wondered how many people had hurt her before she chose to make her trust so hard to earn.

Some time passed before Tony had to wonder of they were ever going to just call a cab. "Ziva, do we have to walk the whole way?", he whined for his aching feet. After an eight hour flight in a cargo plane, he didn't want to walk all the way to this house she had been left.

Ziva rolled her eyes playfully and allowed a smile to tug at the corners of her mouth. "Do not worry. We are renting a car, since we will be here for some time.", she informed him. She walked to a small shop with various types of vehicles standing outside.

"Not that I'm not all for this idea, but when are you gonna start letting me help with the decision making. You're not alone on this mission, so stop acting like it." Tony had a suspicious feeling from the time they left the navy yard. Ziva only let him in on bits and pieces of what she was planning as soon as they were happening, and he didn't like being in the dark.

Ziva sighed a little but walked into the shop instead of answering his question. After they finished at the shop, Ziva allowed Tony to drive. He thought it was an attempt to placate him, but he never gave up the chance to drive the speed limit. She gave him directions to a small cottage on the out skirts of Paris where there were few buildings and a lot of fields and trees.

The car motored up the trail toward the cottage, and Tony couldn't help but appreciate the simplicity of the small but beautiful home. "Wow. I can't believe you own this place and haven't moved here yet.", Tony admonished as he and Ziva walked up to the cottage.

They walked into the building and looked around. It was still well furnished and had been looked after in the owner's absence. There was a kitchen, den, bed room, and office. Ziva walked into the bed room and set her bag on the bed. Tony followed suit and decided to put off asking about sleeping arrangements. She pulled out a new cell phone she had gotten just before they had left D.C. and called Abby who had encrypted their phones and done some sort of tech stuff to make it untraceable.

"Ziva? How's Paris? Have you taken pictures yet? Are you and Tony okay? When do I get to meet your cute pilot friend?" Abby's questions flew through the phone at Ziva, and she couldn't answer one before another was being asked.

She smiled when she heard McGee reminding Abby to let her answer. "Hello, Abby. We are doing well, and Paris is as beautiful as ever. Tony has assured me he will be taking many pictures for you, and Russell is not your type. Have you found anything else on Agassi?", she asked to get to the point.

I better get pictures of both of you, and what do you mean he's not my type? I like hot pilots who fly to Paris!" Abby had ignored Ziva's request and jumped straight into the observations Ziva had made about her type of man.

Ziva had seen this coming and tried to organize her words into a nicer let down. "Abby, he is a friend, but not all of my friends are people you would want to be associated with. Now will you please tell me if you have anything new on Agassi?", Ziva plead again.

"Fine, but I want a good reason for why you get to sleep with him and I don't!" Ziva cringed a little, because she had known Tony was beside her listening to the conversation. He raised an eye brow at her, but she turned her attention back to Abby. "As for Agassi, I haven't found anything of extreme hinkiness. I've been trying to track him through his cell, but he's good or has good guys working for him. But I guess it could be both or neither. Maybe-"

Abby's became a back ground noise when McGee took the phone from her. "I looked into his patterns, and I found out that he likes to go to a restaurant in Paris at least once a week. _He_ hasn't ever technically been there, but credit cards of the people who work for him are used there a lot.", McGee said proudly.

"How do you know who works for him?", she asked skeptically. Agassi had managed to stay under the radar for years, so McGee would have to be good to have found something on him after less than a day.

"I went back to when Agassi was a teenager. He was in high school with the same people who have been paying for his weekly meals and meeting him at the restaurant. It's not a cheap place, and these guys all have indictments and accusations that they walked on. You'll never guess who payed for their lawyers and bailed them out of jail every time."

"Agassi. Nice work McGee. Do you have addresses on any of these friends?", Tony stepped in. He hadn't been happy when Abby suggested that Ziva and Russell had been in a relationship, but he was really irked when Ziva hadn't corrected her.

"No addresses, so they're probably using aliases. I'm sending you the address of the restaurant. It's a nice place, so you need to dress nice if you're going in under cover.", he said with amusement in his voice, "Ow, ow, ow! Abby, I am not going to- ow! Abby says she wants pictures of you all dressed up tonight."

They could hear a struggle for the phone taking place. Abby won. "I mean it. If I don't get pictures of Ziva all dressed up and Tony in a sexy suit, there will be hell to pay!", she demanded into the phone. Tony and Ziva laughed at McGee and Abby but finally agreed to send Abby pictures.

"I did not bring any dress clothes, so you will only have pictures of me in my usual attire.", Ziva announced to the forensic scientist.

She could hear Abby's smile on the other side of the phone. "I packed you the prettiest dress ever! You're gonna look so pretty, and you better not let Tony see before it's time to leave.", Abby ordered threateningly. Ziva would have protested, but she had a feeling Abby would win that argument like she did with most.

"So, should we get ready for dinner?", Tony asked without trying to hide his curiosity about Ziva's dress.

_**You can see Ziva's dress before Tony, beause the link to the dress I pictured her in is on my profile. Tell me what you think about it!**_


	8. Chapter 8

Tony looked at himself in the hall mirror for the hundredth time in ten minutes and looked at the bed room door yet again. Ziva had been in the room for almost three hours video chatting with Abby and getting dressed. He had dressed in a simple black suit that Abby had packed for him, but Ziva's dress was still a mystery to him.

He knew Abby's taste, but she wouldn't have picked that for Ziva. The door opened, and Tony turned to see what his date for the night looked like. Ziva stepped out of the room, and Tony was stuck between staring and reminding himself to breathe. "You look...wow.", he said in the most inarticulate way he could.

Ziva watched him through glowing chocolate orbs, and she was pleased to see that he couldn't take his eyes off of her. She leaned against the door and gave Tony a sultry smile and mesmerizing eyes that made his heart skip a beat and then a second. "Ready?", she asked in a low voice.

Tony looked her up and down again before shaking himself. He walked over until he was standing directly in front of her, and they were nearly pressed against each other "Can't wait.", he replied while staring into her eyes deeply. He was so tempted by her plump lips but reminded himself that this trip was about business. He sighed a little and stepped away from the exotic temptation before him.

They walked to the car, and Tony opened Ziva's door for her. She rolled her eyes in a way that told him she could have done it herself and would have preferred to. He sent a look back that told her he didn't care. They drove to the restaurant and found that Mr. and Mrs. DiNardo had a reservation at the exclusive eatery, courtesy of Abby.

They were seated and had a clear view of Agassi and one of his men. Sitting beside Agassi was a young boy who looked strikingly like Hadara and, by default, Ziva. Chaviv didn't seem scared or worried, but he didn't seem to be enjoying himself either. If Ari had promised his son to a terrorist, chances were the boy hadn't been subjected to any ill treatment. Tony saw the way Ziva was looking at her nephew and knew she was seconds away from pulling her gun on the man.

He laid his hand on hers. To anyone else they looked like a couple enjoying a romantic dinner, but in actuality Tony was trying to remind Ziva that Agassi would have people to come after them if they tried anything in the open. "_Sweetie_, maybe you should be looking at your husband instead of gawking at the other patrons.", Tony reminded her quietly.

She looked down at their hands and was reminded of where they were by the wedding ring on her hand. Abby had packed everything they might need, including wedding bands. She smiled lovingly at Tony and only watched Agassi from the corner of her eye. "Of course, I seem to have lost my self in the beauty of the restaurant.", she responded.

They ate dinner, and Tony only had a minor heart attack when he looked at the bill. Ziva offered to pay, but Tony's chauvinistic pride wouldn't allow him to let a woman pay. They stepped outside into the evening air, and Ziva had to resist the urge to shoot Agassi and run with Chaviv. "Tony, he has only one man with him and Chaviv. This is the prime opportunity to take them out and run with Chaviv. No one will know who it was without a witness.", she explained in a rushed voice.

"He could have more people watching, and you don't know who's in his pocket. We could be back in D.C. for a week and then suddenly someone blows up my car again. I can't afford to replace _another _car. We need to do this slow and planned out.", he negotiated back.

"If we do not have him soon, I want to do this my way.", she said. They drove back to the cottage and went inside. Ziva went into the bed room to change out of her dress, and Tony finally started looking around the residence.

He saw pictures that made him want to take up heavy drinking again. She had been beautiful, and they looked so happy then. Ziva stepped out of the bed room in a pair of shorts and a tank top. Tony looked up at her from the photo he held in his hand. "You never said which friend.", he noted and looked back down at the silver haired man with his arms wrapped around a fiery red head.

Ziva stepped beside him and looked at the picture for a minute. "She said they would always have Paris. Just after their mission here is when she left him to pursue her career, but she couldn't let go of the happiness they had." Ziva had considered removing the pictures when she had visited the house after Jenny's death, but it didn't seem right.

Tony saw the smile that rarely graced his boss's face that reached his eyes, and Jenny looked more peaceful than she ever had when he had known her. "They were pretty good together, even after all that time." He remembered having a small school boy crush on his past director, but nothing would ever have come of it.

Ziva smiled down at the picture and recalled her own memories of traveling through Europe with Jenny. It had been a nightmare to process her crime scene, but they had done it for Gibbs. Tony set the picture down on the table where it had been and went to the bed room to get out of the monkey suit Abby had insisted he wear. Ziva watched the picture and remembered that every one of Gibbs' rules were made from experiences.

"Hey, big day tomorrow. You gonna stay up all night?", Tony asked when he stepped out of the bedroom in his boxers. Ziva turned to him and raised a questioning eye brow. He laughed a little at the realization he had come to only moments ago. "Apparently _un_packing is also part of Abby's job.", he said in explanation for not wearing more clothes.

Ziva laughed and nodded in understanding. She wasn't surprised that Abby had already decided exactly how their mission would play out. Ziva stepped past him into the room, and Tony had to force himself not to gasp when her bare arm brushed against his shirtless torso. His heart beat sped rapidly, and he mentally head slapped himself for being so easily affected by his partner.

By the time he had regained his equilibrium and turned into the room, Ziva had already crawled into the right side of the bed and was watching him with obvious interest. "You seem to be...distracted.", she said when he didn't move to the bed. When he didn't speak, she continued with, "Rat got your tongue?"

Tony smiled at her incorrect English. "Cat. Cat got my tongue, and no it doesn't. My tongue works very, _very_ well." The last part was added in a low, suggestive voice which earned him a seductive look from Ziva's bed room eyes. He forced himself to lay down in the bed beside her and pull the covers over himself.

She switched off the lamp, and the room was cast into complete darkness. Their surroundings were completely silent and black, so unlike the city's constant sounds and glowing street lights. Tony could see why two partners thrown together here could over step the invisible boundaries. He was still awake when Ziva's rhythmic snores filled the room. He smiled at the memories the sound brought on.

There were memories of an under cover mission when they had been married assassins. He also remembered a case they had been working when there was a mole at the pentagon. He smiled and could still feel Ziva sleeping with her head resting on his shoulder. The night they had in Paris when they were moving the witness floated into his mind. There was no spontaneous announcements of love or a night of passion, but he had woken up with his arms wrapped around one Ziva David who had not ripped his arm off when she woke up.

Tony considered his options and wondered if he was still allowed to nudge the invisible line. Ziva lay on her side facing away from him, but he worried that she might kill him before realizing who he was. He knew that she had moved past her time in Somalia, but there was no way to keep something like that from rising to the surface every now and then. She bottled up her emotions and bad memories, hid them in a box away from the light of day. But he knew that she couldn't trap all of the horrible things she had been through forever, and occasionally they made their presence known before she could push the lid back down on her box.

She sighed in her sleep, and he determined that it would be a night free of her past. He cautiously laid his arm across her waist and waited to lose his hand. When nothing happened, he tightened his arm around her and was pleasantly surprised when she snuggled into his chest. She smelled like a combination of vanilla and something purely Ziva.

Gibbs sat at his desk restlessly waiting for new information on Agassi or Ziva and Tony. McGee was still tracking all of Agassi's moves, and Abby had announced that she had made the DiNardos reservations. Hadara was in school and had been staying with Gibbs since Ziva and Tony's departure. He remembered the night before when Hadara had to spend her second night at Gibbs' house.

_Flash back_

_ Abby bounded through Gibbs' front door and into the basement where he was working on his latest project. "Gibbs, we had the funnest day ever! The movie was great, and she loved the zoo. Can you believe she had never been before?"_

_ Hadara followed Abby down the steps with a bright smile on her face. "I saw a lion! It was so big, and we saw a fox too. It was so fun, and Abby knew what all the animals were.", she explained excitedly._

_ Gibbs looked up from his boat and smiled at the girls who were interrupting each other in their hurry to explain everything in their day. When they were finished with their recount of the day, Abby announced that she had to go. "Did you and Abby eat?", Gibbs asked Hadara._

_ She went through her day in her mind. "We got pop corn at the movies.", she said as if that were enough to be considered dinner._

_ Gibbs laughed at her childish way of thinking. Hadara was a lot like Ziva who was like a daughter to Gibbs. He loved her like his daughter and would do anything for her, including taking care of her seven year old niece who was still unaware of their familial ties. "I'll make us spaghetti. Why don't you go play.", he suggested. _

_ Hadara had been sleeping in Kelly's room. At first Gibbs wasn't sure how he had felt about someone else being in his daughter's room, but Hadara was nearly part of his surrogate family. She nodded eagerly and ran up the basement steps to play with her toys. _

_ Gibbs also walked up the steps and went to the kitchen. When it was decided that Hadara would be staying with him, Abby had gone all out on her grocery shopping. She had bought snacks like cookies and actual food where Gibbs had originally had only a steak and beer for food. He admitted that it was nice to have someone to cook for again, and he liked taking care of his surrogate grand daughter. "Dinner's ready.", he called through the house. _

_ The sound of tiny feet pittering through the house made his heart swell a bit, and he realized how grateful he was that she had come into their lives. He would never show it on his face or say it aloud, but everyone could tell that children loved Gibbs, and the feelings were mutual. "Mm, smells good.", Hadara said as she walked into the kitchen. They ate and talked about her day some more._

_ After dinner Hadara took a bath and dressed for bed, and Gibbs went to tuck her in. "Gibbs, when can I go back to Ziva's?", she asked curiously. She was trying not to cry, but Ziva seemed like the safest person to her. When she was with Ziva or at her apartment, Hadara felt like no one could hurt her._

_ Gibbs thought about how to answer the question before voicing anything. He didn't want to lie to the sweet little girl in front of him, but there was a chance Ziva wouldn't come back. "I don't know. She's trying to help someone, and it could take awhile,", he said honestly. _

_ She sighed but accepted the answer. Gibbs pulled the covers over her and kissed her on the fore head. "I hope she comes home soon. I miss her and Tony.", Hadara said just before dozing off._

_ Gibbs looked down at the sleeping form and said the only thing he could think of. "Me too.", he whispered. _

_ End flash back_

"Gibbs.", Vance called from up stairs on the landing. He didn't seem happy, and Gibbs wondered if it had really taken him three days to notice that Ziva and Tony were gone. His team never missed work, so it should have alerted someone sooner than that.

McGee looked up from his tracking and waited to see if Gibbs had orders for him. Gibbs simply glanced at him, telling him to keep working and call if he found something, and stood from his desk. He took the steps two at a time and followed Vance to his office. "Need something, Leon?", Gibbs asked innocently.

Vance sat at his desk and pressed the tips of his fingers together in thought. "Your team has not taken a day off without force in years, so why are two of your people on leave for an unknown amount of time?", he asked suspiciously.

Gibbs ghosted a smile and answered as he always did. "Sometimes people need a break. Thought you'd be happy that they're finally using their time off."

Vance sighed in agitation, because he knew to expect a vague answer even if he didn't like it. "They're off the grid. I mean completely off the map. Our techs couldn't track their phones or the GPS in the car they were seen leaving together three days ago. They aren't at their homes, and your team has been avoiding me but looking extremely busy. I'm wondering why they look so busy when there's a lack of cases."

"Sounds like you've got it all figured out.", Gibbs said as his only response. He knew it would annoy Vance to be left out of anything involving his agents, but they weren't his agents. Anyone on Gibbs' team was his agent first and the director's agent when Gibbs said they were.

"Do you have people on an under cover assignment that I don't know about?", Vance asked. He wanted to be straight to the point and find out what was being hidden from him.

"You're the director, so you would know about any investigation or under cover op that might be going on." Gibbs wouldn't give his team up, and they both knew it.

Vance also knew that Abby was as much on team Gibbs as any of the field agents. She wouldn't tell him anything about Ziva and Tony even if he threatened to fire her. He couldn't fire her though, because she was the best. "I will find out what's going on, Gibbs.", Vance said finally. He said it with confidence and intimidation, but Gibbs knew it was an empty threat, and no one could intimidate him. He left the office with a smile and went back to waiting.

_**I hope Ziva didn't seem too OOC, but I was thinking that she's been through the emotional wringer and wouldn't quite be herself. Also I like when Tony gets to show off his skills in planning and such, because he doesn't get enough credit for it.**_


	9. Chapter 9

Ziva sat in the den looking out the window at the fields around the cottage. She had been awake since five in the morning and wanted to start their task for the day. Tony had pointed out the night before that she probably shouldn't be knocking on some poor woman's door that early, but she wanted to. It was currently seven in the morning, and Ziva had already cooked herself breakfast and cleaned her gun twice.

She was reading one of the many books Jenny had left on the shelf in the den when she finally heard Tony moving around. He walked into the den and stretched his arms into the air. "We have nothing to do until we go talk to Aimee, so why are you awake this early?", he asked incredulously.

She looked up from the book she had been reading and noted with a small smile that Tony's hair managed to look sexy in its disheveled state. In reality she had gotten out of the bed as quickly as possible after realizing that she had been comfortably in Tony's arms. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy it, but she couldn't allow herself to become dependent on having him there. "I have not slept past five- thirty in many years, so it is a force of habit..", she said instead of giving the truth.

Tony didn't believe her, because she was an awful liar, but accepted the answer anyway to ease her stress level. "So, what's for breakfast?", he asked instead.

"I have already eaten, but there is enough for you to make something if you would like.", she told him before standing and walking towards the bed room.

"Where are you off to?", he asked curiously. He had been wondering why Ziva was so distant lately, but she wasn't the an open book on her warmest days.

She turned to look at him but didn't move closer. "I was waiting until you woke up to take a shower, so I would not wake you." He reminded himself not to smile at the gesture of kindness she had shown when thinking of him, because she didn't like dealing with feelings and such. He only nodded and began his search for something to make an omelet with while Ziva went to shower and dress for the day.

Two hours later both Tony and Ziva were fed, showered, dressed, and ready to go. "Have you wondered how we're supposed to ask this woman about Chaviv?", Tony asked when they were almost ready to visit Aimee. "Hey, we want to find your son, so we can take him instead. By the way, the person who took him is a terrorist that Chaviv's dad promised him to. Have a nice day.", Tony said in a fake cheerful voice.

Ziva had been a little worried about how they would explain this to Aimee. The woman must have been worried about her son, and now two strangers were about to walk into her home and ask to take her son away. "If Chaviv wishes to stay with his mother, I will have no objections. However I can only hope this woman cares about her son, since she hasn't even filed a missing person's report.", Ziva reminded.

Abby and McGee had been looking into the records and only knew Chaviv had been taken when they saw that he hadn't been in school for six months. Ziva would gladly take him as well as Hadara, but he would most likely want to stay with the mother he had known for his entire life. Tony didn't want Ziva to feel too optimistic about getting both her niece and nephew, although he could tell she wanted Chaviv to leave with them.

He avoided having to answer her unspoken questions by saying that he was going to call Gibbs. He put the phone on speaker and dialed his boss's number. The phone rang twice before they heard the sound of the lines connecting. "Gibbs.", he said into the phone gruffly.

Tony and Ziva sat on the couch in the den and hoped for some new intel. "Hey, boss. We saw Agassi at the restaurant last night, and he had Chaviv with him. We're going to talk to Aimee Gautier today, but after that we don't really have any idea where Agassi might be. We were hoping you had gotten some information that could help us.", he said hopefully to Gibbs.

Gibbs had been expecting Ziva and Tony to check in, so Abby and McGee were at his house to help give information that he couldn't explain. McGee took over quickly. "I've been following the people who work for Agassi. One man, Darryl Badeau, has been very busy lately. He's been going to a store down town almost everyday for nearly a month. The owner of the store was on the terrorist watch list for some time, because everything in his store can be used in making high explosives among other reasons. He's off the list now, because nothing ever happened there, but I'm thinking his store is a meeting place, and it will be involved in something soon."

"How are you thinking this will go down? Go in, grab Chaviv, get out?" Gibbs wanted to make sure his team was taken care of even when he couldn't be there. He knew Ziva had never spent much time on planning. She did what it took to complete her mission, but that had caused her to make more than a few enemies who could come to collect any day. It had also caused her to be injured on more than one occasion.

Ziva and Tony shared a look from their side of the phone. "Ziva seems to think we can just go in guns blazing and shoot anyone who tries to stop us from taking him." Tony wanted Gibbs to tell Ziva that she was crazy for thinking they could make it out without someone following or being able to find them, because she certainly wasn't going to listen to him.

"I have been on these types of missions before. He will not stay here for much longer, so we should take Chaviv while we know where he is and kill anyone who tries to get in our way." She maintained that she had the best way of getting them all out alive, and Tony was unfamiliar being in situations like they were currently in.

Gibbs wasn't surprised that they had clashing ideas of how to handle the situation. Tony wanted to ensure that they made it out without being able to be tracked, but Ziva was more concerned with getting Chaviv and worrying about staying hidden later. "Figure it out. Get Chaviv before they can move, but don't let yourselves be followed. It _will_ come back if you don't get out clean."

All thoughts turned to the mission that had come back to haunt Gibbs and Jenny. They had lost a vital member of their team because Gibbs and Jen hadn't been able to get out clean, and no one wanted that for Ziva and Tony. They agreed to be careful and try to work fast but efficiently. They had already been gone for four days, and Vance had been making regular visits to Abby, Duckie, and the squad room.

Hadara had heard everyone's voices and walked down tot he basement. "Gibbs, are you talking to Ziva?", she asked hopefully. The honest hope in her voice made everyone that much more determined to bring Tony and Ziva home safe. The phone was already on speaker, so Hadara immediately began talking when he nodded. "Ziva?", she asked the phone.

Ziva felt her smile grow at the sound of Hadara's voice. "Hey, Hadara. Are you having fun with Gibbs?", she asked. She wanted so badly to be back with Hadara, because in the few days they had been together she felt like Hadara had become a huge part of her. Tony watched the way Ziva's face lit up at the sound of Hadara's voice, and he knew his face reflected the same.

"Yeah. Abby took me to the zoo, and Timmy lets me play on his computer. Duckie told me about the time he almost got ate by the alligator! And Gibbs is almost as good as you at cooking. Is Tony there?" They could hear the excitement and joy in Hadara's voice when she spoke about her new family.

"Hey, you. I bet Tim hasn't been keeping up with movie nights, has he?" Tony had been watching at least one movie every night with Hadara before he and Ziva had left.

Hadara laughed and confirmed that McGee had been slacking in the movies department. "It's okay though. They're more fun when you talk with the people and tell me all about it. When are you and Ziva coming home?", she asked.

Tony and Ziva shared another look and had a silent argument about who had to answer the question. Ziva knew she should be the one to answer it, since she was the one who was supposed to be taking care of Hadara. "We will be home as soon as we can. It may take longer than we had hoped." Ziva was never one for lying to people, and she wasn't going to start then. They continued talking until Gibbs announced that Hadara was going to be late for school. "Have fun. We will see you as soon as possible.", Ziva reminded her.

After the call ended Ziva watched the phone for a moment longer before standing and setting her mind on the task to come. The drive to Aimee Gautier's house took nearly an hour, and the ride was silent for the most part. Neither Tony nor Ziva had anything to say, and it seemed foolish to fill the silence with trivial conversation.

They arrived at a dilapidated house that looked as if it should have been foreclosed on ages ago. There was duct tape where a window had once been, and the paint had peeled to the point where it was hard to tell what color the house had actually been. The only indication that there was life within the rotting walls was when a woman stepped out of the house upon sighting the two agents. "Can I help you?", she asked.

Aimee Gautier looked as though she hadn't eaten properly in years, and her frail state made her seem older then her thirty years. The clothes she wore could have been twice as old as she was, and they hung off of her tiny body. Two boy and a girl peeked around her from inside the house, but they looked as poorly fed and dressed as their mother. "Aimee Gautier?", Ziva asked the woman.

Aimee's eyes widened, and she looked as if her life had been threatened through the two simple words, her name. She looked around and motioned for Tony and Ziva to follow her into the house quickly. Tony didn't like the paranoia in her face, but he knew Ziva wouldn't leave without answers. They entered the home and saw that it matched its outer walls well.

There was very little furniture in the house, and the walls were as badly peeled as the outside. There was a pile of blankets in the center of the den, and it was obvious that was where the children slept. Three scared faces and one terrified face watched Tony and Ziva after the front door had closed. "Do we have to go too?", the little girl asked.

Ziva was about to ask why she would think that and where she thought she was going when her phone rang. She excused herself, and Tony took over the interview. "Yes?", Ziva said into the phone.

"I've been looking into Aimee Gautier's financial records, since she was our only lead. Anyway she filed for bankruptcy a year ago and has been making sporadic payments in cash for for nearly fifteen years. This coincides with her multiple arrests for prostitution and drug possession. It looks like age hasn't been kind to her, because she has been making less deposits over the years, and there's less money when she does until seven months ago when a quarter of a million dollars was transferred into her account from an unknown account in the caymans."

"Oh God.", Ziva said when the realization hit her. She felt her blood boiling beneath her skin as she became more angry than she thought she could be that quickly.

McGee wasn't done yet. "A few weeks later another quarter of a million was transferred into her account, so she's up to half a million dollars.", he finished. Ziva thanked him and ended the call.

She walked back to where Tony was talking to Aimee and noticed that the children had seemingly disappeared while she was on the phone. "Why didn't you report your son missing, Miss Gautier?", Tony asked.

"Because she sold him.", Ziva cut in angrily. The look on Aimee's face confirmed what Ziva had said, and Tony was as shocked as she had been. "So tell us, why did you sell your own son?", she asked.

Aimee looked like she was near tears. "I never wanted children, but in my line of work stuff happens." Tony had quickly caught on to her occupation being a prostitute. "It was a slow night, and I hadn't had any clients. I got drunk out of my mind, and I woke up in a pile of trash the next morning. I assumed I passed out and stayed there the whole night, but two months later I knew I was pregnant. Chaviv was my fourth child, and I didn't need another mouth to feed. I was going to get an abortion, but I found this note when I got home from a doctor's visit. It said that I should keep the baby, name him Chaviv, and I would be rewarded later. I had no idea what it meant, but the thousand dollars that came with it made me agreeable."

Tony had taken a disliking to the woman almost as soon as she had started her story. "So you kept the baby, did what the note said, and sold him to the first person who came along?", Tony asked with unveiled contempt in his voice.

"No! I received another note after Chaviv was born. It said that it was from his father, and a man would be coming for Chaviv one day. It didn't say when, but there was a picture. Almost seven months ago the man in the picture knocked on my door and said he was here for Chaviv. He offered me so much money, and I had to feed my kids. Chaviv was an accident, so something good might as well come from it." She tried to defend her actions, but it was clear that Tony and Ziva were not open to her explanation.

"You threw away your own flesh and blood for money, and it looks like none of it has gone towards helping your family. How much of it have you already spent on drugs and alcohol?", Ziva asked. She had no sympathy for a woman who would resort to selling her own child for drug money. It was obvious that her other three children hadn't seen any good from the money she had gotten.

Aimee's eyes narrowed at the woman in front of her. "It's not easy living like I do! Never knowing where my next meal's coming from, and not knowing how long I'll have my kids. I didn't want another one, and this guy seemed alright. You don't know what it's like, so don't judge me for it.", she demanded.

Ziva decided to take a different approach. "No one could know what it's like for you to be completely alone. You can't trust anyone, because you have seen people's true intentions too many times before. You can't allow anyone to help you, because help comes with a price. The good die young, so you can't allow yourself to be a good person, correct?"

Tony was more focused on Ziva than Aimee. The way she spoke said that she was speaking from experience rather than intuition. Aimee's eyes had welled with tears, and she nodded when the sobs over rode her ability to speak. She calmed herself down before attempting to form words again. "I know I have a problem, but it's so hard staying clean. Now I have enough to take care of my kids and pay for everything. The man said he wouldn't hurt Chaviv."

"Did he say where he was taking Chaviv or why he wanted him?", Tony asked. He wanted desperately for Ziva to let him in, but he knew not to ask by now. She made references to her past sometimes about how she had killed someone _**(A/N: season 4 episode 4, faking it)**_ or the time she had made a vague comment about how when starving, even bugs are optional food. _**(A/N: season 4 episode 15, friends and lovers)**_.

"He just said that he was taking Chaviv off my hands and that I should forget we had ever talked. I needed the money, and I...was not in my right mind.", she said hesitantly.

"You mean you were high as a kite and can't remember most of what happened.", Tony inferred by the guilty tinge to her voice. He couldn't hide the way he detested her approach on raising children.

"Like I said, I'm not perfect." They didn't speak for much longer, and Ziva had to fight the urge to tell the woman she wasn't fit to be within a mile of impressionable children, let alone to raise them. She and Tony left soon after and went back to the cottage

The ride back was far from silent. "That woman is not fit to be a mother, and those children deserve so much more than living in that decrepit excuse for a house!", Ziva continued her rant.

"I know, and I told Abby who already told me she's putting a call in to a friend at social services as you speak." Tony hoped that would calm Ziva down, because he could tell she had been really upset by what they had seen at Aimee's house. He was too. Her oldest child was fifteen, and the youngest was twelve; only two years older than Chaviv.

Ziva walked with purposeful strides into the house when they arrived back, and Tony had a bad feeling that she had made a decision he wasn't going to like. "Tony, we are going to get Chaviv in two days. Tomorrow we will make a plan, and the day after we will find him and take him back home with us.", she announced leaving no room for argument.

_**I hope everyone was true to their characters in this chapter. Some action scenes are coming up soon, and there are only three or four chapters left!**_


	10. Chapter 10

Another night had passed, although this one hadn't been as restful as the one preceding it. Tony had lain awake deep into the night and noticed that Ziva was sleeping the way she had on the plane, ready to wake and fight at any moment. When dawn finally broke across the black sky Tony was still in a half conscious state of dozing for a few minutes before waking when his eyes became just a little too heavy.

Neither agent tried to pretend sleep would come. It had alluded them both, and they accepted it. Ziva rose at five in the morning and went to shower, since it was obvious that Tony was very much awake. He gave up on lying in bed, as comfortable as it was, and went to make breakfast. In true early rising fashion, he started with coffee and worked from there.

When Ziva entered the kitchen, she was greeted with the smell of fresh pancakes and french toast. "It smells amazing in here.", she admonished appreciatively. "I didn't know you could cook something other than cereal and coffee.", she added in awe of the delicious smell wafting around her.

Tony laughed at the way she spoke. "Don't sound so surprised. Do you want pancakes or french toast or both?", he asked after pushing the last slice of french toast onto one of the two large plates on the counter. He moved them to the table and set a bottle of maple syrup between the plates.

"Why did you make both pancakes and french toast?", she wondered while stabbing a piece of french toast with her fork. She added a second to her plate and drizzled the syrup over them generously.

After pouring them each a cup of coffee, Tony joined her at the table and stabbed himself two pancakes and a slice of french toast. "Well I had already started making pancakes when I realized, hey, I'm in France, so I should be eating the local cuisine."

"You do know that french toast is not actually French, right? The earliest it can be traced to is fourth century Rome.", Ziva explained but didn't complain about getting french toast for breakfast. She was very much enjoying this side of Tony and admitted to herself that she wouldn't mind seeing it more often if it came with a breakfast menu.

"Whatever, smarty pants. Just eat the cinammony goodness.", Tony ordered playfully. They continued eating and drinking coffee with random bits of light conversation mixed in. After eating Ziva said she would wash the dishes while Tony showered, since he had cooked.

Tony stood under the hot water of the shower and couldn't shake the feelings that had stirred at the thought that he and Ziva were acting very domestic. They were sharing a home and bed. He had technically taken her on a date and cooked her breakfast. He had lied about why he added the extra breakfast option. It was really because he remembered Ziva once telling him how much she liked french toast, and he couldn't resist. It was unsettling that they were acting so...married, more so than they had when they were actually supposed to be married.

Ziva's thoughts weren't far behind Tony's. She had been wondering when they became so comfortable around each other. The night before they had dropped the act of falling asleep before becoming wrapped in the other's arms, and Tony had simply pulled Ziva to him when she crawled into bed. She wasn't sure if this was progression for their relationship type thing or if it would just be added to the list of topics they never spoke of.

After the dishes and Tony were washed and dried, he and Ziva prepared for the day ahead of them. The entire day was to be spent planning for the next day when they would take Chaviv. Ziva opened her laptop (that Abby had also rigged to be off grid) and opened a video chat with the laptop McGee had brought to Gibbs' house. Tony and Ziva sat at the table and watched Abby's face open on the screen. "Ziva, Tony! I'm so glad to see you!", she exclaimed excitedly.

McGee was quickly by her side and smiled when he saw Tony and Ziva looking back at him. "Hey, how are things going there?", he asked seriously but with a pleasant tone for Abby's sake.

"We're good, Mcinterruptus. Ziva hasn't even tried to kill me yet.", Tony said in a fake excited voice. For his troubles he received an elbow to his rib from Ziva, but it wasn't as hard as she had in the past. He grunted softly but made no mention of it to his colleagues.

"_Yet_.", Ziva emphasized threateningly but with a small smile. "What can you tell us, McGee?", she continued.

"Well Abby and I can say for sure that there are never more than seven people in the store where Agassi's been meeting after five in the afternoon. The store closes, and that's when Agassi, Chaviv, and whoever goes with them enter the store."

"We also found out that Mr. Laurence Laroque and Mr. Nicolas Bellamont, two of Aggasi's aliases, are scheduled to be on a flight to Mexico tomorrow night at eleven- thirty, but we're not sure how many others he may have.", Abby interrupted when she could tell that McGee was about to start explaining how he had found his information.

"We wouldn't be able to legally touch him once he's in Mexico.", Tony voiced. So the plan was set whether they were ready or not. "Where's Gibbs?", Tony asked.

At that moment McGee and Abby scooted out of the way, and Gibbs entered the picture. "Here, DiNozzo.", he announced to the computer's web cam.

"Hey, boss. So we're definitely going in tomorrow sometime after five. Is that all you can tell us?" Ziva didn't seem worried or surprised that they would be going in without any information on exactly how many people would be in the store or what kind of weapons they would have. "And how does McGee know for sure that there won't be more than seven?"

"He hacked into a satellite and used the heat sensors to watch the video of the store from the last two weeks." Just after Gibbs answered Tony's question, McGee could be heard in the background reminding them that it was very illegal and never to be spoken of again.

"Where is Hadara?", Ziva asked as casually as possible. She had been missing the girl terribly and wanted to talk to her again before they went in to get Chaviv. She wasn't sure that they would survive and wanted to at least say good bye...if not in so many specific words.

"She's at school.", Gibbs said. He knew that no mission was ever a guaranteed success, and the definition of success could spread over many borders. "Be careful, and get out clean. This will_ not _come back to bite us in the ass. Got it?"

"Got it.", Tony and Ziva answered firmly at the same time. It was obvious that the only way to get out clean was to kill everyone in the store when they were there. Ziva and Tony had accepted this. They had killed before, and this would not be the last time. Neither liked it, but there was no other option.

The day was spent going over the plan. There were two entrances to the store, so they would have to split up. Tony wasn't fond of this plan but knew there was no way around it without chancing that someone might escape. "How are we going to know where Chaviv is though? Everyone's gonna start shooting as soon as we bust in there, so how do you propose we ensure Chaviv's safety?", Tony asked.

"Instead of 'busting in' as you say, we could sneak in while they are holding their meeting. We put silencers on the guns and shoot fast.", Ziva offered up for an answer.

Tony rolled his eyes at her predictable answer. "I thought of that already, Zee-vah. We can't just hope for luck. Why don't we go with a distraction instead? I can do something out front, and you take Chaviv out the back. That way we don't waste ammo or time."

Ziva sighed. "There is no way we can leave without killing people. Agassi will follow Chaviv, and his men will follow him. We must make them follow him to the grave instead.", she argued back. "Let's compromise. You can be the distraction, and I will go in and take out whoever stays behind with Chaviv. You will handle whoever goes outside."

Tony didn't like how any of these plans were ending in his mind. "And what if you end up with five guys and I only have two? There has to be a better way to make sure they all go one way." He knew Ziva could take care of herself, but that didn't mean he wanted her to take her chances against five armed men.

"Perhaps we should not wait until they are all in the store. Once they are inside, they have the advantage of the defensible post. They also have the advantage of not being worried about Chaviv being hurt or killed." Ziva was trying to broaden their options of where they could take Chaviv from.

"You want to tail them and wait for a good time to come up?", Tony asked. His tone blatantly said that was a worse idea than any of the others so far. They would have no way of knowing if a good time would come up, and they only had one night.

"No, we could stop them when they are on their way to the airport. As far as Agassi is concerned, no one knows that he is in the country at all, so his defenses will be down. We could block his way and go from there.", Ziva suggested.

"What if he decides to use Chaviv as a hostage?"

Ziva considered a way around this question for some time, and Tony waited patiently for her to think. "We should assume that all five body guards will be with him.", she said to herself. "And we can't do it at the airport; too many people. Maybe we get him when they are leaving the store? When they are going to their car."

That plan was workable. "Okay, possible. We could wait until Chaviv is in our sights. We'll have to be on either side of the store, and we could slash their tires to make sure no one can run with him." Tony could see the plan forming in Ziva's head.

She was working out all of the possible strategies and outcomes in her head. "Yes, and one of us will go out and make our presence known. When they are focused on that person, the other can get Chaviv if possible. If not then whoever is in hiding will have to back the other."

Tony was nodding along with the plan. "The store's on a bad street, so no one will say anything if they get some shots off, but we could stay in hiding. They will be more distracted by gunfire than a person." So they had their plan. They would wait, kill, and run; simple as that. Tony looked at his watch and couldn't believe that it was already midnight. "Guess we should call it a day.", Tony said and stood from his place at the table to stretch.

Ziva also stood an nodded. When they had retired to the bed room, Ziva began changing right away. She stripped off her shirt and jeans while Tony tried to make himself look away. He was screaming at himself in his head that he should not be ogling his partner like that. Gibbs' voice was telling him that there was no way he should be having the kinds of thoughts he was having about his partner.

Ziva felt Tony's eyes boring into her and loved the lust she felt radiating off of him in waves. For good measure she bent over to pick up her shirt, and Tony's eyes bugged out. If he had been a cartoon character, his eyes would have been rolling around on the floor by then. He swallowed and was finally able to look away after Ziva slipped the shirt over her head. It fell to around mid thigh, so she decided to forgo pants.

Tony freed himself of his pants and shirt and decided to just wear the boxers he had on without a shirt. He turned to see Ziva lying in bed with the covers already on and crawled in himself. Ziva switched off the lamp and the room darkened. They laid in the bed separately for a few minutes before Tony decided that he wouldn't act intimidated now just because Ziva had teased him.

He rolled onto his sides and pulled her to him like he had the night before. This time however he had to stifle a groan when soft bare legs rubbed against him. He hadn't known that Ziva was only wearing the shirt and panties until then. Not backing down from the challenge, he held his grip on her.

Ziva was within an inch of rolling over and shredding the last articles of clothing separating her from Tony's naked body. They were so close, and she could feel all of him pressing against her. Her thoughts had taken a turn for the naughty, and she was using all of her self control to stay where she was.

Ziva's scent was driving Tony crazy, and he could feel himself reacting to the way her body fit perfectly against his. He wasn't the only one who had noticed his problem. Ziva couldn't help but push the boundaries. She moved her lower half back into his groin and heard his sharp intake of breath. "Ziva.", Tony breathed out. Her name sounded like a plea and warning at the same time on his lips.

She turned so that she was lying on her back and gazed into his lusty, green eyes. Her own jade eyes had been filled with her own brand of liquid lust. They stared each other down, each daring the other to make the first move. Tony had propped himself up on his elbow when Ziva turned to him, so he was partially hovering over her. He leaned in minutely, and Ziva's lips parted slightly of their own accord. Her eyes urged him on, so Tony finally did what he had been dying to do for years.

His lips feathered over hers, but he still hadn't kissed her. He had gone more than halfway, and all she needed to do was take a single step. Ziva met him in the last millimeter, and their lips melded together perfectly. The kiss started soft but heated and intensified. Ziva licked Tony's bottom lip and was granted immediate access to his mouth. Their tongues dueled for dominance, and Tony had an arm on either side of Ziva's body so that he was above her. Her kiss was more intoxicating than any amount of alcohol he had ever consumed, and his was more addicting than any drug could ever be in her system.

Their hands wandered over the other's body, and they finally explored the uncharted waters they had been avoiding. Tony pushed Ziva's shirt up past her thighs and had almost exposed her breasts when she stopped him. She finally forced herself to break the kiss and pushed Tony back. It wasn't a rough push, just enough to ask him to stop.

Tony, of course, stopped right away. He looked down at her with worried eyes. Her unkempt hair and kiss swollen lips were the sexiest thing Tony had ever seen, and it took all of his will power to stop himself from ripping her clothes off right then. "I want to do this, but we can not afford distractions before tomorrow.", Ziva said regretfully.

Tony nodded in understanding and moved from his place above her. He was more worried about after tomorrow. They had a way of pushing emotional or meaningful moments under the rug if those moments weren't addressed quickly, so he couldn't help but wonder if she was waiting for time to sweep their moment away.

Ziva knew what Tony was thinking, and she had considered it. "This is not done. We will talk amongst other things when the mission is complete.", she assured him. To prove her words true, Ziva moved closer to Tony and laid her head on his chest. He smiled and wrapped his arms around her, and they drifted into a dreamless but restful sleep.


	11. Chapter 11

"Abby, we are not discussing this right now. Tony and I are handling the most critical part of the mission tonight, and you want to talk about relationships?" Ziva had made the error of mentioning to Abby that she and Tony had shared a kiss, and Abby had promptly forgotten anything else not relating to that.

Abby had been annoyed that she was only just hearing about it, and McGee had thought, but not voiced, that rule number twelve must be void in Paris. "I can't believe you're being so calm about it. I can't wait until you make some little Tony and Zivas! They're going to be so cute with your curly hair and Tony's eyes!" In sixty seconds flat Abby had gone from a small make out session to naming Ziva and Tony's children.

Ziva's stomach had been doing somersaults every time she thought of the kisses and where this could lead to. "We agreed that we will talk about where our relationship is going after the mission is over. For now can we focus on living through the mission?"

Ziva had only called to update everyone on their plan and talk to Hadara before they went in. Abby had taken the phone outside when Ziva started talking about Tony, but she brought the phone back in and started the video chat on the laptop. Gibbs walked down to the basement with an energetic Hadara close behind. She ran to the laptop and smiled widely when she saw Ziva. "Ziva, I miss you so much! I drew you and Tony a bunch of pictures, and I hope you like them.", she announced.

Tony had walked into the kitchen without a shirt on and sat beside Ziva. "What's this I hear about pictures?", he asked when he sat down. He took Ziva's hand under the table, but that was the only indication they gave to anything other than a platonic sitting.

"Everyone's been helping me. Abby showed me how to draw a bat, but hers looked better, and Timmy showed me how to make pictures on the computer. I can't wait to show you." Hadara was animatedly talking and gesturing with her hands in the air.

"I can not wait to see them. I bet they are very pretty. What did you draw?" Ziva couldn't believe it had only been a week since she had last seen Hadara, because it felt like years. The little girl had planted herself into everyone's heart, and Ziva knew she couldn't give her up.

"I drew a bat like Abby's, and I drew a puppy. I drew a picture of everyone. It had you and Tony and Gibbs and Abby and Timmy and Duckie and Jimmy and Breena." She rattled off the names and sounded very proud of herself for including everyone in the NCIS family.

"When did you meet Breena?", Tony asked. He hated that he was already missing events in Hadara's life and was determined not to miss many more once they were back home with her.

"She brought Jimmy lunch one day. She's really nice too.", Hadara explained matter of factly. Tony couldn't help but notice how many Ziva like qualities Hadara had; the way she tilted her head or the way she lifted an eye brow at someone she thought should be giving her more information. One look into those eyes that matched Ziva's so well, and he would never be able to say no to her again.

They talked about how Hadara liked her new school and how much fun she was having with the team. Apparently their coworkers had been skipping lunch a lot to visit Hadara or take her out during their lunch breaks. Abby took Hadara up stairs and away from the basement while Tony and Ziva explained their plan to Gibbs and McGee. Abby would be filled in on the details later. "Get in and get out. I want you out of Paris as soon as you have Chaviv.", Gibbs ordered.

"I will call Russel and ask him if he can be here by then. If not, we may have to commandeer a boat as an alternative.", Ziva warned. She had stolen vehicles before when the need to escape was more urgent than time would allow for, but she wanted to make sure that Gibbs and Tony knew that they had already broken laws and weren't done yet.

Gibbs nodded in understanding and remembered more than a few times when the law had needed to be bypassed in order to protect his cover or a team member. "Whatever it takes." Gibbs never told them he was worried or that he hoped they would be okay, because that would mean admitting that their was a possibility for something to go wrong. His look and tone made it clear that they were to be careful and that he cared.

Ziva ended the video chat and turned to Tony. "We should prepare.", she said to him. He nodded and they went to their bags. Another reason for not going through a commercial flight was that the number of guns they had wouldn't be allowed through customs even with their badges, and they didn't want to alert anyone with their badges if it could be avoided.

She then dialed Russell's number. He answered on the first ring. "Hello.", he said into the phone.

"Want to do that extra favor for me?", she asked hopefully. Their conversation was quick and to the point, and when it was over Ziva went to dress for their final night in Paris.

Ziva was wearing her cargo pants and a snug black shirt with combat boots. She began unloading the many weapons from her bag and concealing them in her boots, pockets, and anywhere else she could fit them. She even managed to fit a tiny blade into her pony tail using a bobby pin.

Tony watched silently as the weapons disappeared one by one. Once they were gone he couldn't tell she had any weapons on her other than the obvious gun at her hip. He unloaded his own small arsenal and began fitting them into his wardrobe. He wore dark jeans and a black t-shirt with a pair of black tennis shoes. His weapons were more noticeable than Ziva's, but they weren't going for hidden in this situation.

They went to their car and made the long drive to the store where Agassi and his crew would be making their final meeting before fleeing from France. It was only just five in the afternoon when they arrived at the store, so they sat and prepared to wait.

A black SUV stopped in front of the entrance to the store after about an hour, and five men exited the vehicle. Two stepped out of the front, one from each door to the back seat, and one man exited the back of the SUV. Apparently they had someone sit in the very back to watch the road behind them in case anyone tried following them. The five men circled the area in search of any suspicious cars or people but were satisfied with their safety.

Agassi and a young boy stepped out of the SUV when the man who had been driving gave a signal that the perimeter was clear. Chaviv had dark hair and eyes like Hadara, but he was rather tall for his age. His clothes were as ragged as Aimee's other children's had been, and his bones jutted out against his taut skin. Tony decided that their next task was to get Chaviv a cheese burger and large fries from the Beltway Burger.

Tony and Ziva sat in their car and watched the store for hours after that. People checked the windows periodically, and Agassi was never directly in their line of fire. Ziva was relieved that they hadn't gone with one of their plans to take the boy from inside the store. "So, should we shoot them as they are walking out or wait until they have all gotten near the car?", she wondered.

"I'm just wondering how you're going to be able to slash their tires with them still checking the windows.", Tony muttered as he looked through his binoculars at the man checking the windows again. He shook his head when another person checked the window after only minutes.

Ziva smiled and chuckled quietly. "That will be the easiest part.", she declared. She pulled a knife from somewhere on her person and opened the car door just after the blinds closed, signaling that the person had seen no problems outside the windows. The sun was barely casting light onto the terrain at that point, and Ziva melted into the shadows that were constantly changing. The sun's shadows can play tricks on the human eye, and Tony thought he saw her a few times before jumping nearly a foot in the air when the passenger side door opened without warning. "Done.", she announced.

They waited as the stars appeared in the sky. The night was clear, so the stars shined brightly in the sky. At ten in the evening the front entrance opened and two men stepped out of the door. They searched with their eyes but wouldn't have been able to see the now empty car across the lot. They cleared the area and motioned for the others to join them. Chaviv was the last to exit the store behind Agassi.

They were half way to their SUV when two of the body guards hit the ground at almost the same time. The remaining three surrounded Agassi and Chaviv and pulled their weapons into the open. "Where is the boy?", Agassi demanded into the night. The guards held their weapons ready and looked for Chaviv who had seemingly disappeared. He had been replaced by a small piece of paper lying on the ground. The body guards were still on edge with good reason when another man fell to the ground. The last guards fired into the clearing, hoping that they would be lucky enough to hit their invisible predator.

The final two guards ushered Agassi back toward the store, but he was still searching for Chaviv angrily with the paper clutched in his hand. The last two fell just before they reached the store, and Ziva put the final bullet into Agassi's head before he could realize that all of his men were dead. Tony and Ziva stepped out of their hiding places on opposite sides of the store with Chaviv behind Ziva. She walked to Agassi's body and took the paper from his hands. It said only, _Tell Chaviv good bye._

They checked each man's pulse and confirmed six kills. "You are safe now.", Ziva told Chaviv when he looked like he was scared for his life. "We are going to take you somewhere safe.", she finished. Something in her voice must have gotten through to Chaviv, because he visibly calmed down and followed them without hesitation to the car.

Ziva drove at top speed to the abandoned airport where they had been dropped off only a week before. The plane was already running when she parked the car, and Russell greeted them as happily as he had before. He was unfazed by the extra person and disheveled looks of Tony and Ziva. When Tony asked him if he was used to seeing people like that he simply answered, "I learned not to ask Ziva too many questions a long time ago." before telling them that the plane was ready when they were.

Tony, Ziva, and Chaviv boarded the plane, and Ziva handed Chaviv a shopping bag with clothes she had bought when Tony took her to lunch the day before. She had gotten his sizes from Aimee, and he changed behind a stack of crates. Tony and Ziva sat across from each other, and Chaviv sat beside Ziva. A short while after the plane ascended Chaviv had fallen asleep. It was a sad reminder that he was still only a ten year old boy who was put into an awful situation by parents who never cared about his well being.

Eight hours later the cargo plane landed in a different field than it had taken off from a week prior, and the three weary passengers exited for the final time. "Thank you, Russell. It was good to see you again.", Ziva said as a form of good bye.

"You too. Hopefully we will meet again under better circumstances." They hugged one more time before Ziva, Tony, and Chaviv began walking away. Tony called Gibbs and gave him their location, so he could pick them up. Gibbs arrived soon after and took the three back to his house. Upon arrival they were immediately attacked by Abby's tight hugs.

Hadara walked out of the house and ran into Ziva's open arms. Ziva picked her up and held the girl tightly against her. She set Hadara back on the ground, so Tony could receive his hugs. They all went into the house where more hugs were exchanged with Duckie. "Hadara, I would like you to meet Chaviv.", Ziva said when they were more settled.

She and Chaviv looked at each other for a moment. "Are you staying with me and Ziva?", Hadara asked finally. Chaviv and Hadara both looked to Ziva for an answer that she didn't have.

"I am unsure whether that will be possible or not.", she admitted.

Abby sprung to her side and held out a file she had been working on while McGee was handling the mission work. "I had to hack a few databases, but Chaviv has been in foster care here for four years, and you were recently granted temporary guardianship pending a probationary period like Hadara's. If you want to, that is.", Abby said for Ziva's ears alone.

Ziva smiled and nodded. "That sounds about right to me. Thank you so much, all of you." She looked at each person around her and knew that she had her family surrounding her. "Chaviv, would you like to stay with Hadara and I?", she asked carefully.

Chaviv looked at the faces of hope and smiles. He wasn't sure who all of these people were or why they had worked so hard to save him from his bleak fate, but he felt safe. "Yes.", he said confidently. Ziva smiled and nodded. Abby helped Duckie make a grandeur meal, and everyone ate dinner at la casa de Gibbs.

After dinner was done and Hadara and Chaviv had been sent to bed, Gibbs found Ziva in the basement. He sat beside her on the work bench and waited to see if she would speak, though he knew she wouldn't. "You're gonna do fine.", he said and sipped his bourbon.

Ziva smiled and nodded a little. "So many things have changed since I first came to NCIS, and now I'm getting two children. How do I know that I will not mess up, Gibbs?", she asked.

She tried to put on her mask of indifference, but the cracks showed her insecurity. "You don't, but you'll do the best you can. Everyone will help whenever you need us." Gibbs made sure to tell her that he was included in the list of people she could call for help. "And I hope you two can make it work.", he said genuinely.

Ziva would have been surprised, but Gibbs always knew what was happening with all of them. "Thank you." She read his message in the simple words. He was giving Tony and herself permission to see where their relationship could go. He kissed her cheek, and they rejoined the group. He nodded to Tony as a silent message that he knew and gave them his blessing.

_**Only one chpater left! Hope you'll all join for me for the end of this story that I have worked so hard to make perfect for you.**_


	12. Epilogue

_Two years later_

Tony stood looking out over the small gathering of people before him. He wasn't sure if his erratic heart beat was from nerves or excitement or some insane combination of the two. It was almost like the rush he felt when he was about to go into a building to take down a suspect. He felt the sun beaming down on him and saw the sea of faces, but they were all a blur to him when he had eyes only for one person. "You okay?", McGee asked from beside him.

Tony took in a deep breath. "Yeah, I just can't believe this is happening to me of all people.", he said. He saw Abby in her all black attire and noticed that she already had tears in her eyes. She waved to him from where she stood, and they all looked down the aisle when the music started playing slowly.

Tony's heart skipped at least two beats when he saw Ziva walking down the aisle towards him in the must stunning white dress he had ever seen. She looked elegant, sexy, and gorgeous without even trying, but she was trying now, and he couldn't believe he was still standing. Gibbs walked Ziva down the aisle and knew he had made the right choice by letting Ziva and Tony be together.

Tony couldn't take his eyes off her face. Her dark skin was set off by the ivory dress that enhanced her natural beauty, and her hair was curled perfectly (courtesy of Abby). Their eyes locked, and Tony was mesmerized by the amber orbs paralyzing him where he stood. Gibbs and Ziva stopped in front of the altar, and he kissed her cheek. He nodded to Tony, and an understanding passed between them; Tony would take care of Ziva or face the wrath of Gibbs.

Ziva was like a daughter to Gibbs, and Tony would be in a lot of trouble if he did anything to hurt her. Then again, he could never bring himself to intentionally cause her pain. He took Ziva's hand in his, and the wedding began. Abby was Ziva's maid of honor, and she cried the entire time, although she played her part well. McGee stood as Tony's best man and reminded himself to ask Tony to return the favor when he proposed to Abby.

Ziva and Tony went through their wedding with their eyes locked only on the other. Everyone watching could see how happy they were and how perfect they were for each other. Gibbs sat by Ducky and felt the emotions of playing father of the bride for the first time in his life. He was proud to be the man who was asked to give Ziva to her new husband and life. Hadara had done a perfect job as the flower girl, and Chaviv had been an exquisite ring bearer. The DiNozzo family was happy to see that Tony had finally found someone he wanted to be with forever and hadnt followed in his father's love life.

Rings were exchanged and words were spoken, but Tony and Ziva were focused only on the other without a second thought to what was going on around them. "You may kiss the bride.", the preacher announced finally. Tony smiled down at his bride softly, and Ziva returned it. Neither felt hesitant or regretful. Tony leaned down and captured Ziva's lips with his own. This kiss held passion and love. It was the kiss that signified every kiss, fight, child, and loving moment they would share for the next fifty or sixty years in the future.

Abby's tears were streaming harder than ever, and she and McGee shared a meaningful look as the lovers kissed for the first time as a married couple. Gibbs and Ducky applauded the kiss with the rest of the members watching, and Gibbs was pleased that Tony hadn't followed in quite all of his foot steps. They were everything the other needed, and it would be a long time before anyone saw a couple who could rival their passion and dedication to each other.

Eli David watched from his seat and felt a bittersweet pang in his heart. He had made many choices, good and bad, concerning his daughter. He had been invited to the wedding but had not been asked to escort his own daughter down the aisle. He watched the smile reach her eyes when she looked at her new husband, and he felt the pain that came with losing her as his daughter to Gibbs, but he was still in her life to a point. He finally accepted that his choices to put country before family may have cause more pain than peace

When everything had finally settled Ziva and Gibbs shared the father-daughter dance at her reception, and Tony replaced Gibbs to dance with Ziva for their first dance together. He held her close as they swayed to the beat of the music. "Tony, I have something to tell you.", Ziva said with her head rested on Tony's broad chest. She moved to look up at him, and he asked silently what she needed to say. "You're going to have to find a new partner soon.", she told him.

Tony's eye brows came together in confusion. "You're not leaving, are you?", he asked with only a slight hint of worry in his voice.

Ziva smiled softly and shook her head. "I will be on maternity leave.", she told him. "I am pregnant."

Tony's lips split into a huge smile, and he laughed gleefully. "Really? A little DiNozzo.", he whispered to her affectionately. He kissed her, and put all of his emotions into the one kiss. Their dancing stopped, and other couples glided around them while they shared their moment of pure joy. "Abby's already spoiled Hadara and Chaviv, so I know this one's gonna be just as lucky.", he joked. "I love you so much, Ziva DiNozzo.", he whispered while staring into her eyes.

Ziva smiled softly and watched the emotions flitting through Tony's eyes. Love. Joy. Happiness. Peace. "I love you too, Tony."

_**The link for Ziva's wedding dress is on my profile if you want to see it. Thank you all for staying with this story, and please review about the dress and ending!**_


End file.
